Love is a Four Letter Word, But So is Hate
by Shaynezo
Summary: Emily and Hanna are best friends; the perfect pair. They've been to hell and back. Who would have thought that Emily would have fallen in love with her? But Hanna doesn't feel the same way. Or does she?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Do we own PLL? Sadly, no. Should we? ;) Perhaps. So, Marissa and I will each be submitting a story. ;) Then, you'll get one written by the both of us. This story will be AU.

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><p><em>Beep, beep, beep.<em>

The blaring alarm clock was loud and unexpected. Emily Fields groaned and opened her eyes slightly, squinting at her alarm clock. Six o' clock a.m. She fumbled for the cord, unplugging it. Ugh. It was _way_ too early. She rolled over and immediately got a mouthful of blond hair. Her nose wrinkled and she spat it out.

"Hanna," she mumbled groggily, shaking her shoulder. "You have to get up. We have school." Hanna mumbled incoherently, swatting Emily's hand away. "Mhm, staying home."

Emily snorted. "You know we have a math test today. You have to go." She sat up, pulling the covers off of herself and Hanna. Hanna was curled up into a ball. Her blond hair was splashed out across Emily's pillows. She was facing the wall, but Emily knew Hanna was frowning. The corners of her mouth curled up into a smirk. "I'll get you Starbucks if you get up."

Upon hearing this, Hanna sat up fast. She grinned sleepily at Emily. "Non-fat latte, right?"

_"Duh."_ Hanna beamed and slowly got out of Emily's warm bed. She turned and opened her mouth.

"Yes, you can use my shower. I'll use my mom's," Emily said before Hanna could say anything. Emily slowly slid out of bed. She stumbled into her computer chair and cursed loudly. A second later, she was nearly blinded by the sudden bright light of her room. Hanna was leaning against the doorframe, a smirk on her lips. "You're _so_ graceful," she teased. Emily flipped her off and the blond erupted into giggles. "And a little naughty, apparently."

Emily glared mockingly at her friend. "Keep it up and you won't get your coffee," she threatened.

Hanna's smirk vanished. "What?" she exclaimed. "No fair."

"Then stop teasing me."

Hanna rolled her eyes and walked over to Emily. She stopped in front of her and folded her arms across her chest. "Baby."

"Diva." Emily shot back.

"Loser."

"Shopaholic."

Hanna grinned. "You've got me there, Em." She breezed past Emily and opened the top drawer to the dresser near the window.

"What are you doing?"

"Helping you with your outfit, duh." She tossed a purple shirt at Emily. "Wear that shirt, it compliments your skin tone." Hanna opened the bottom drawer and selected a pair of dark blue skinny jeans. She stuffed them into Emily's arms. "These jeans will go well with it. Oh, and be sure to wear flats with skinny jeans."

Emily arched an eyebrow. "Anything else, Miss Bossy Britches?"

Hanna gaped. "I am not bossy!"

"You are so!"

"I am not!"

"You just told me what to wear!"

"Yeah, because I know what looks good on you!"

Emily rolled her eyes. "And what are _you_ wearing?"

Hanna shrugged, walking over to her duffle bag. She picked it up. "The clothes I brought, smart one. I just hope I look good today."

Emma scoffed. "Please. _You always_ look good." She inwardly cursed. _Great job, Em._

Hanna's brow furrowed. "Thank you?"

"Sure. It's the truth." Emily cleared her throat. "Okay, go shower or we won't have enough time for a Starbucks run." Hanna's green eyes widened and she darted into Emily's bathroom and closing the door behind her. Shaking her head, Emily headed off to shower.

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><p>Three hours later, Emily sat in her history classroom. Mr. Edwards was droning on about World War II, but she could care less. She was much too tired today. A folded up piece of paper landed on her desk, and she didn't have to turn around to know it was Hanna's. She glanced up at her teacher before slowly unfolding the note. She smiled at the pink ink.<p>

**_Mr. Edwards looks like a pedophile, did I ever tell you that? His smile is so creepy. And he keeps a jar of candy corn on his desk. I mean, what the fuck? It's not Halloween. Anyway, Em, thanks for the Starbucks today. -HB._**

Emily grinned and quickly scribbled a response back with her bright blue gel pen. Keeping her eyes on Mr. Edwards, she stretched her arm behind her, leaning back. Fingers touched hers lightly as the note was pulled out of her grasp, and a small shock went through her. She sighed and folded her arms on her desk, lowering her eyes to her notebook.

Hanna smoothed out the note on her desk.

**_Mr. Edwards does look like a pedophile. He uses the candy corn to lure children to his house, ha! And, no problem. I know Hanna Marin needs her Starbucks fix every morning._**

She bit down lightly on her pen to keep from laughing. They'd already been in detention twice for passing notes back and forth. They didn't need another. She glanced briefly up at Mr. Edwards before dropping her eyes back to Emily's note.

**_**_I am really tired. Han, we have got to stop staying up all night playing Call of Duty. I'm sorry for getting you addicted. Oh, and you know you are. Don't even try to deny it. So, are we switching it up this weekend? It's Friday, after all. Should Spencer and Aria come over? Let me know. -Em_**_**

Hanna's smile slowly evaporated. For some reason, she wanted to spend the weekend alone with Emily She loved it when it was just her and Emily, the dynamic duo. She loved Aria and Spencer, but...they didn't understand her in the way that Emily did. All Aria wanted to do was talk about Mr. Fitz, and all Spencer wanted to do was...well, study. They didn't like playing Call of Duty. They didn't like making scrapbooks. It was clear to anyone with half a brain, that out of the four of them, Emily and Hanna were the closest. Lately, though, Hanna was starting to wonder if there was something more between them. She was starting to notice these little things that Emily would do. Like last night, Emily kept poking the tip of her tongue out of her mouth whenever she got frustrated with their game. When they were studying for their math test, Emily would trace her fingers over a bracelet that Hanna had once given her. If she didn't understand something, her nose would wrinkle up. Hanna found everything Emily did incredibly...cute? Was that even possible? She was straight. _Right?_

"Miss Marin!" Hanna jumped, startled. Mr. Edwards was standing at her desk. His beefy arms were crossed across his chest, and he was glaring down at her. His glasses were sliding down his nose. His dark hair looked greasy and he radiated sardines. Ew. And this guy was supposed to be a professional? Hanna smiled meekly, aware of everyone's eyes on her.

"Y-yes?"

"Would you care to tell me what is so interesting that you couldn't wait to read it after class?"

Hanna licked her lips. Emily had her head in her hands. "I-I was just-"

"What you were doing, Miss Marin, is the same thing you've been doing since the start of the semester; nothing. You haven't been paying attention all year, now have you? Instead," he gestured toward the note on Hanna's desk. "You've been passing notes." Before Mr. Edwards could stop her, Emily shot her arm out and grabbed the note, crumpling it in her fists. Mr. Edwards' eyes flashed to Emily. "Miss Fields, I should have known that you would be the other culprit behind this. Thank you, for being the one to volunteer to read this week's note to your classmates."

Hanna covered her face with her hands. The room had gone completely silent. She parted her fingers slightly and peeked through them. Emily had stood up. She swallowed hard. They were about to go up in flames for this one. Writing notes to each other in class was one thing, but joking about a teacher being a pedophile, was going too far. They were going to get into serious trouble. Schools took issues like this very seriously. And whether it was a joke between two friends or not, the school board would launch a full investigation. Her mom was already pissed at her for stealing and for wrecking Sean's father's car. Her mom had said that if she got in trouble one more time, she would not hesitate to ship her off to military school. _Guess I'd better start packing my bags._

Emily cleared her throat and Hanna took a deep breath, lowering her hands. Almost instantly, the two locked eyes. Hanna's heart fluttered. But she was way too amped up to worry about that now.

"Miss Fields?" Mr. Edwards raised an eyebrow. "Now."

Emily sighed. She couldn't let Hanna get into trouble. It's not like she could lie and say it was about something stupid, because he would read it. If it she said it was about something that people would actually believe, maybe he'd think it were true and not want to read the note. She placed her hands on her hips and faced their history teacher. "You can't punish Hanna for this. It's my fault. I-I-was telling Hanna..." She paused to take a deep breath. "-how I feel about her." She swallowed. "I-I-love her, and that's what the note contained. I felt like I had to tell her, or I would explode. We've been dating for a while, but I was just waiting to tell her."

Hanna nearly choked on saliva. What did Emily just say? Almost as if on cue, every single head, besides Emily's, turned to stare at her. Hanna ran her tongue over her teeth.

"Miss Marin?" Mr. Edwards had paled a bit, and he looked a little ill. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Is this true?"

Hanna immediately started twisting the strings of her hoodie around, a nervous habit that she really needed to break. If she said it wasn't true, then they would just get into worse trouble for lying, and Mr. Edwards would surely want to read the note. If she said it were true, well...everything would change. Hanna rose her eyes to Emily's and inhaled deeply.

"It's true."

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><p>End of chapter one xD. So, thoughts? ;) You know you want to review.<p>

More to come!

~S


	2. I'd Go Anywhere With You

;) Hey, fellow PLL fans! So, here's the second chapter. I hope you guys enjoy it!

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><p>All at once, the room burst into excited chatter. Out of the corner of her eye, Hanna saw two girls texting underneath their desks. She shrugged weakly. "Do you have a <em>problem<em> with that, Mr. Edwards? Does it bother you that two of your_ female_ students are dating?" She crossed her arms over her history textbook, eyebrow raised.

Mr. Edwards' normally red, blotchy face paled considerably. He looked like he'd just saw the ghost of Hitler. He brushed off non-existent lint off his tie. "Of course not, Miss Marin. If you and Miss Fields want to be involved romantically, then it is no business of mine." His eyes cut to Emily and he pointed to her chair. Wordlessly, the brunette sat down. "But, I will ask you both to please pay more attention in my classroom. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal, sir," the two responded in unison.

Mr. Edwards nodded. "Good." He made his way across his classroom, shoes squeaking on the tiled floor. "So, as I was saying, World War II..." He turned and began writing on the chalkboard.

Hanna was too busy listening to the conversations around her to pay attention to her teacher. She cocked her head and sat very still.

"I always knew they'd get together," someone said from across the room.

"It's gross, if you ask me."

"Yeah, they're _definitely_ going to hell."

Hanna frowned. R_eally? People are still homophobic? Wow. Idiots. I can't believe people are so ignorant. I don't understand what the big deal is. But, now the whole class thinks Emily and I are dating. This is going to spread around the school like wildfire. What are we supposed to do?_ Hanna slowly looked up and glanced meekly around. Her fellow peers were staring at her. Every so often, one of them would whisper to each other and point. Hanna wanted to slug them. How annoying. And it was only going to get worse. The bell rang and Hanna leaped to her feet, snatching up her pink folder and Coach bag. Emily rose to her feet and Hanna practically dragged her out of the classroom, only half-listening as Mr. Edwards told them to study chapter thirty-two. Or was it thirty- four? Whatever. It's not like she'd do her homework anyway.

The two girls stumbled out into the hall and were almost mowed down by a mob of students. Hanna pulled Emily into the nearest bathroom and immediately started sneezing. It smelt heavily of perfume and hairspray. Two freshmen girls were standing at the sinks, fixing their makeup. They were both wearing the exact same outfit. Hanna snorted. "Out," she said simply, pointing to the door. "Now. The circus needs more clowns, so go there. You'll fit right in with all of that makeup." The freshmen girls gaped at her.

"You're not the boss of us," one muttered, turning around to face them.

"Yeah," the other countered.

Hanna clenched her teeth together. _"Out,"_ she snarled. "And take your clone with you," she added, leaning against the wall. The shorter of the two girls grabbed her purse off the counter and stormed out. "Bitch," she muttered as she passed. Her friend quickly followed after her.

"Little harsh, Han," Emily said quietly when the door had swung shut.

Hanna shrugged and slid down to the bathroom floor, stretching her legs out and crossing her ankles. She looked up tiredly at Emily. "Why did you say that?"

"Say what?" Emily asked, hand automatically moving to play with her bracelet.

"You know damn well what."

Emily sighed and plopped next to Hanna. "It was the only thing I could think of." She shrugged "He bought it, didn't he?"

Hanna nodded. "I guess he did." She grinned and nudged Emily with her shoulder. "I owe you, Fields." She giggled and cleared her throat. "_And, I love her."_ Hanna imitated, reaching out and tapping Emily's shoulder with a fist. "That was a great lie."

Emily laughed nervously. _It wasn't a lie. I do love you, Hanna. I love you so, so much. I only wish I had the courage to tell you how I really felt. _The brunette tucked a lock of hair behind her ears and forced on a smile. "I know, right? Mr. Edwards looked like he was going to faint!"

Hanna chuckled. "Homophobic ass."

"No kidding!"

Hanna exhaled deeply and rested her head on Emily's shoulder, not noticing how the latter tensed almost instantly. "So, what do we do?" She picked up Emily's hand and squeezed lightly. _A friendly gesture,_ she told herself. _Right?_

"W-what do you mean?" Emily managed to ask. H_anna, move away from me. Please. You have no idea how you make me feel. You drive me insane. I love everything about you. Move, move, move. Before I do something crazy._

"-Do you agree?" Emily blinked. Shit. She had missed what Hanna was saying. _If she wasn't holding my hand, I'd be able to concentrate. Come on, Em. Play it cool. Don't think about how soft her hands are. Or...or how fucking good she smells. Oh, God. She smells like cinnamon and vanilla. Stop it, Emily. Focus. Focus on what she's saying to you._

"Emily?"

Emily shook her head and pulled her hand out of Hanna's, inching away from her slightly. "Uh, what?"

Hanna placed her hands in her lap. "Have you not heard a word I've said?"

Emily shrugged sheepishly. "No," she laughed. "I was, uh, thinking about a swim meet I have coming up."

Hanna knitted her eyebrows. "Oh. Well, I was saying that we should just put the rumor to bed before it has a chance to spread. Right?"

Emily giggled.

"What?"

"You rhymed."

"When?"

"When you said the words 'bed' and 'spread.' They both end with a 'D'." She gave a _uh, duh_, look.

Hanna shook her head, smiling. "I'm serious! Do you think that's a good idea?"

Emily stood and picked up her backpack, slipping it over her shoulders. "Sure. I mean, how bad could one rumor get?" She held out her hand. "Come on. We'll be late for chem."

Hanna's nose wrinkled and she stuck out her tongue. "Ew chemistry. Can't we just stay here?"

Emily looked at her skeptically. "You want to ditch class and stay in a bathroom?"

Hanna snorted. "Yes, Em. I love to cut class and hang out in _bathrooms,_" she spat sarcastically. "I'm going to hold my first fashion show in the bathroom, did you know?"

Emily nodded thoughtfully, playing along. "The toilets will serve as chairs?"

"And the sinks."

"Might be uncomfortable."

"Well, then my fans will just have to hurry up to nab a toilet, won't they? You can be my announcer. How lucky are you?"

_"So_ lucky."

The two girls giggled. Hanna reached out and took Emily's hand, allowing her friend to pull her to her feet. She dug through her purse and removed her keys, dangling them. A devilish smile spread across her glossy lips. "But, I do think we should ditch. We're not doing anything in chem anyway. We're watching a movie, right?"

"Yup. _Flubber_, remember? Our teacher's rewarding the class because we all passed our last test." She smirked and hit Hanna's shoulder. "Even you."

"Only because you helped me study."

"So, you really want to ditch?" Emily looked nervous. Ditching wasn't really something she liked to do. What if they got caught? She hesitated. "I don't know, Hanna."

Hanna stuck her lower lip out in a pout, cupping her hands together pleadingly. "Aw, please? She took Emily's hands in her own. "Come on, _Emmykins."_

Emily's face flushed. Recently, Hanna and only Hanna, had started calling her 'Emmykins.' Emily loved that Hanna had come up with a new nickname for her. Hanna had stated that only she could call Emily when Aria had tried to during a sleepover the four of them were having. It had made Emily feel special. But to Emily, the nickname sounded more like a name she would get from a _girlfriend_, rather than her best friend. Emily didn't really want to ditch. But then Hanna's eyes twinkled and she just...couldn't say no. She smiled and squeezed back. "Let's ditch," she finally said.

Hanna grinned excitedly and pumped her fist in the air. "Yes! Great, come on!" Once again, Emily found herself being dragged out into the hall. Fortunately it was empty this time.

The clock in the hall ticked away. It seemed a lot louder to Emily._ You need to relax, Fields. Hanna's going to notice that something's up._ She took a deep breath and followed Hanna out one of the back doors to the school. The blaring sun beamed down on their heads as the two friends hurried across the parking lot. Hanna unlocked her and practically threw herself into the driver's side, Emily sliding in next to her seconds after. They slammed their doors simultaneously. Emily pressed to fingers to her racing pulse. The excitement of being caught was kind of thrilling. She buckled herself in and turned up the radio. Turning to Hanna, she asked, "So, where are we going?"

Hanna turned the car on, tapping her perfectly manicured nails against the steering wheel. She glanced sideways at Emily, just as the sun shone through their windows. Emily's eyes sparkled, and the blond gasped quietly. _Whoa. Emily has amazing eyes._

"...What?"

Hanna swallowed and tore her gaze away. "Nothing. Just...thinking about where we're going."_ Liar,_ her conscience teased. _Lying is a sport for you, isn't it?_

"Okay, so where are we going?"

Hanna smirked. "Mexico," she replied as she peeled out of the school's driveway and down the street. "Where else?"

Emily snickered. "Mexico sounds perfect." She leaned back and closed her eyes. "Wake me up when we get there."

"No, really? I thought I'd just leave you in the car," Hanna muttered.

A slow, amused smile spread over Emily's lips. "You wouldn't do that."

"Watch me."

Emily sat up and opened her eyes. She rested her hands in her lap, staring at Hanna intensely.

Hanna glanced sideways at Emily as she came to a stop at a red light. "What are you doing?"

"Watching you, duh."

Hanna rolled her eyes. "Sit back in your seat, Fields."

"Yes, Captain Marin!" Emily cried, saluting her and settling back in her seat.

"Captain?"

"Of your car!"

"That's on a ship, silly!"

"Whatever." Emily's fingers located the button on the side of her seat and she pressed it until her seat collided with Hanna's back seats. "So, you'll wake me up when we get there?"

Hanna sighed, pretending to be irritated. "I _guess_ if I have to."

Emily smiled and shut her eyes. She didn't care where they were going. As long as she was with Hanna, she'd travel to the ends of the earth.

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><p>And there you go! What did you guys think? Please review! I'll try to update soon! :D<p>

~S


	3. Just Around the Rumor Mill

Yo, guys. This chapter focuses on Spencer and Aria. ;) C'mon, I have to keep up with these two. I was going to add Emily and Hanna's part in here along with the four of them together, but the chapter would have been quite long. However, that chapter will be up very soon, because it's more than halfway written! I love you guys for keeping up with this. You guys are amazing! Enjoy! :)

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><p>Spencer Hastings had a problem. Everything in her life had to be perfect. Her room <em>had<em> to be clean and organized. The books on her bookshelf were sorted by author _and_ category. The clothes in her oak-wood dressers were sorted by color and type of clothing they were. The jeans were in the top drawers, then her t-shirts came next in the one underneath. Shorts went after. Dresses were hung in her closet. Her socks and undergarments were neatly folded in the bottom drawer of her other dresser closest to her window. DVDs and CDs were lined up row by row on her shelve, according to genre. If one thing ever fell out of place, Spencer would _freak._ She spent _hours_ cleaning her house and re-organizing everything she could hit her hands on every single day. While she wasn't worrying about A or about exams (which she did entirely too often), her thoughts were consumed by how disorganized her house might become if she weren't there to clean it up. Had she put her toothbrush in its holder with the handle facing downwards, and not up? Were all of the corners of her sheets and blankets tucked in? They'd better be. It wasn't easy, suffering from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and having a psychopathic stalker to deal with at the same time. But she didn't have a choice. Which is why she was hunched over a beaker, measuring its contents for the sixteenth time in ten minutes. "Does this look right to you?"

"For the last_ time_, you have the right amount of liquid in the beaker!" Aria sighed. _How many more times are you going to check?_

Spencer reached out and straightened Aria's black-and-white striped headband. "I was just checking!"

Aria's dark eyes narrowed. She was used to Spencer's OCD, but it still got annoying.

"Are you sure you don't want me to do it?"

"No!" Spencer gasped, grabbing her ruler and hugging it to her chest. "I can do it."

Aria resisted the urge to snort. "Okay, okay. Sorry." She dropped her eyes to her notebook where she had written **_A + E_** a dozen times. She'd drawn a heart around each of them complete with small roses outlining the hearts._ How creepy would it be if I got this as a tattoo?_ She set her pen down and nudged Spencer with her elbow. Her eyebrows knitted together in thought. "Where are Hanna and Emily? I saw them in math earlier, but they're not here."

The chair in front of them scraped back against the floor loudly and suddenly, Sean Ackard was leaning on their table. His _Phillies_ hat was on backwards and his blond hair stuck out through the adjustment strap. He smirked knowingly and wrapped his hands around one of the handles of their sink. Each lab station had their own sinks so the students could wash out their beakers and lab equipment more quickly, but they were usually used for water wars. He turned the faucet and a hot stream of water shot out. "Probably in an empty classroom eating each other's faces."

The small test tube Spencer was holding slipped through her fingers and Aria snatched it out of the air, just before it hit the floor, saving them both from what would have been more than a month's worth of detention. She carefully placed it on the table. "_What_ did you say?"

Sean's lips curled up into a lopsided smile. "You heard me. Now I know why Hanna was so weird around me. She thought she could cover it up with me?" He rolled his pencil between stocky fingers. "Chicks, man."

Spencer look bewildered. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Sean's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You mean you don't _know_?"

"Know what?" Aria shrieked, earning a few stares. She scowled at them until they turned back around.

Sean's smile morphed into a cocky grin. "Dude," he said, turning the faucet on and off, "they're dating. Hanna and Emily."

Spencer and Aria exchanged a glance before bursting into laughter, leaning on each other for support. Their combined laughter echoed through the science room. Sean looked back and forth between them. "Bro, they've lost it," he said to his lab partner.

"No kidding," the kid whispered back. Sean turned off the faucet and placed his palms on the table. "I'm serious!"

Aria's and Spencer's laughter finally subsided into quiet giggles. Spencer scoffed and went back to checking her measurement again. She bent down so she was level with the beaker. "That is one of the craziest things I've ever heard."

The feather earrings Aria was wearing danced when she nodded in agreement. "And we've heard a lot of crazy things," she added.

Sean rolled his eyes. "God, I thought their two best friends would know before _the rest of the school did._ This isn't a joke. Haven't you heard? Emily told everyone last hour. They have history together. My man Jacob here heard it with his own ears."

Aria's eyes flew to Jacob who swiveled around in his chair. He had way too many piercings and a tattoo of a skull on his neck. Probably the result of a drunken stupor one night when he and the rest of the mongrels went out for a boys' night.

"It's true, dude," he said. Aria cringed. Jacob's voice was raspy. _He's probably been smoking since he was ten or something. Ew. That is disgusting._

Spencer finally looked up from her beaker. "Yeah? Then how come they didn't tell us? Sean said it himself, we're their best friends."

Sean shrugged. "They probably thought you guys would freak. Or take it as a joke. Like you are now."

Jacob cracked his knuckles loudly. "Hey, man, I'm only going by what I, and thirty other kids, heard Emily say herself. They were passing notes in class and Mr. Edwards caught them. He made Emily read it out loud. She said that they were dating and she loved Hanna." He turned back around, adding, "Don't believe me if you don't want to."

Aria looked crestfallen._ Is this true? Hanna never said anything about being gay. Or bisexual. This is way too confusing._ "They've would have told us," she whispered, the uncertainty in her voice clear to even her own ears. "They would have." she insisted, voice cracking.

Spencer couldn't stop herself from fixing Aria's headband yet again. "Absolutely. We don't hide things from each other." _At least not anymore. We all agreed. And Hanna is straight._

Sean rotated his cap forward. "Yeah? Then, tell me, where are they?" He turned back to his lab without waiting for the girls to answer.

Spencer pushed back her chair, grabbing their lab worksheet and standing up. "Come on. We're going to go find Emily and Hanna." She breezed passed her fellow students' lab stations, stopping in front of their teacher's. "Mr. Chambers, we're done with our lab, but Aria isn't feeling well. May I escort her to the nurse?"

A bewildered Aria snatched up her yak-fur bag, stuffing her textbook and notebook inside. When she picked up Spencer's backpack, she nearly fell to the floor. "What the hell you have you got in here, a sink?" she muttered. Ignoring the stares she was getting, she dragged Spencer's backpack across the floor and over to where Spencer stood. "You're superwoman, aren't you?" she asked when Spencer took her backpack from her easily. Aria rubbed her aching shoulder.

"Miss Montgomey, I understand you are not feeling well?" Mr. Chambers asked, eyes settling on the brunette.

Aria froze, blinking. _I don't?_

Mrs. Chambers peered at her sternly. He was one of the most boring teachers in the school, and she looked like the teacher from F_erris Beuller's Day Off_. Even _sounded_ like him. "Do you or do you not?"

"Oh!" Aria squeaked loudly, finally catching on. "Yes, I'm not feeling well. My stomach hurts." Her hands slid down to her stomach and she grimaced in fake pain.

Mr. Chambers sighed deeply. "Go on you two. Hurry up, Miss Hastings." he muttered, shooing them away.

Spencer clamped down on Aria's arm. "Come on, Aria," she said soothingly. "I'll get you to the nurse." She flashed their chemistry teacher a thanks-a-lot smile and the girls rushed from the room.

"Do you think they're really dating?" Aria asked, the moment they'd stepped out into the silent hall.

"Of course not!" Spencer snapped. She brought a palm to her forehead. "They wouldn't do that to us."

Aria arched her eyebrows. "What is _that_ supposed to mean?"

Spencer stopped walking. "Nothing, it means nothing. I meant that they wouldn't keep it a secret from us."

Aria frowned. She didn't believe her, but she'd let it go. For now. "So, where should we look?"

Spencer leaned cooly against the lockers. "Text Hanna." She slumped down to the floor.

Aria whipped out her phone from the inside pocket of her yak-fur bag. She pulled up her contacts list and scrolled through it until she came across Hanna's. She clicked on her name and hit the message option. Her fingers flew over her keypad.

**_Where the hell are you guys? I know Emily's with you. What's going on?_**

She hit SEND and looked up. Spencer had pulled her knees to her chest. Her fingers moved in small, circular motions as she rubbed her temples. "Now what?" Aria inquired, feeling a little uneasy by Spencer's sudden change in behavior.

"Now we wait."

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><p>Okay, that's it! So, what did you guys think? By the way, did any of you get the PLL season one box set? ;)<p>

More to come!

~S


	4. Sweet Secrets

Hey, guys! Yet another chapter. This one is a lot longer than the last! Oh, I apologize if the dividing line annoys any of you, but I had to separate Emily and Hanna's parts from Spencer and Aria's parts. Enjoy!

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><p>"Just try it!"<p>

"It looks..._weird_."

"It's only shrimp!"

"You eat it."

Emily and Hanna were sitting in Lobster King, a small seafood restaurant just blocks away from their school. The restaurant was practically empty and the only people who were dining were an elderly couple who'd been fighting the whole time, and a family of four sitting around a circular table across the room. Every so often, the little girl would poke her fish with her fork and whine about not wanting to eat it. Emily knew how she felt. She didn't like seafood either. She'd only agreed to come to Lobster King because Hanna had wanted to. The blond had been trying to get Emily to try just one piece of her shrimp for the past five minutes, and so far, Emily had refused.

"I want you to try it, Em. It's great, I promise." Hanna stabbed a piece of shrimp with her fork and waved it inches from the brunette's face. Her lips coiled into a smile. A lock of her hair fell in front of her eyes, and Emily desperately wanted to reach out and tuck it behind her ear.

"I don't like shrimp, you know that."

Hanna blew her hair out of her eyes. "You've never tried it! You hate fish and lobster, so you just assume you won't like shrimp. Em, just try it. Please?"

Emily picked up a piece of her chicken with her fork and popped it in her mouth. She chewed and swallowed. "No way, Han."

Hanna dropped her fork and it hit her plate with a _clang_. She crossed her arms, pouting playfully. "_Fine."_

Emily sniggered. "Don't pout, Blondie."

Hanna scowled. "Bite me."

_Don't tempt me, Hanna._ Emily stuck out her tongue playfully. "Uh, no thanks."

A teasing smile tugged at Hanna's lips. "Well, I never." She put a hand over her heart. "I'm insulted, Emily. Truly insulted."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't be so dramatic."

"Well!" Hanna stuck out her lower lip. "First, you refuse to try my shrimp," She dangled a piece a piece in the air, "And now this? I'm hurt," she joked.

A deep sigh left Emily's lips. "I'll try the shr-"

Hanna was out of her seat and sitting next to Emily before the brunette could finish her sentence. She held the large piece of shrimp between her thumb and pointer finger. "Open."

"Um, I can feed myself, Han."

"Open," Hanna repeated.

Emily hesitated and opened her mouth.

Hanna extended her arm, slowly putting the tips of her fingers into Emily's mouth. Her fingers accidentally brushed against Emily's lips. The tingling sensation startled Emily and out of reflex, she clamped down hard on Hanna's fingers before she could pull away. Hanna yelped loudly and wrenched her hand back. "YOU BIT ME," she shouted. The family that was sitting two tables over gawked at them.

Emily swallowed the shrimp without even tasting it. "I'm s-s-sorry. I'm so sorry," she spluttered. "It-it was an accident. You-here, I'll make it better, okay?" Without thinking, Emily grabbed Hanna's hand and pressed her lips longingly to her friend's sore fingers.

Hanna breathed in slowly._ Why's my heart racing? Oh, gosh. Emily's lips are...soft. Wow._

Emily froze. Hanna's fingers on her lips were sending shivers down her spine. _What the hell am I doing?_

Someone cleared their throat and both girls jumped, Hanna pulling her arm back once more. Their waitress was standing at their booth. She was a skinny girl with brilliant green eyes hidden behind black-rimmed glasses. A blue pen rested behind her left ear. Her fire-red hair was pulled into a messy bun. Her slightly-faded name tag read **Alice**. She smiled tentatively, revealing a row of shiny teeth. "Um, are you ladies okay?" she asked. She had a sweet, melody-like voice. She was probably a couple of years older them.

Hanna nodded feverishly. "Yes, we're fine. Sorry for causing a commotion."

Alice's smile brightened. "No problem. Worse stuff has happened here. "Is there anything I can get the two of you?" Her eyes shot to Emily.

Emily smiled politely. "Um, just the check."

"You've got it, sweet cakes." Alice ripped off their check from her pad and handed it to Emily. "Let me know when you're ready." She winked and sauntered away when another couple walked in, the bell above the door echoing through the tiny restaurant.

Hanna watched her walk away. _What was all that about? Do they know each other? Was that girl flirting with Emily? Not that I'm jealous. I'm not. Right?_

"It's on me, Hanna," Emily said, already pulling her tye-dye wallet out of her purse. She dropped a twenty on the table and poked Hanna's side. "Out. We have to get back to school in time for lunch. Aria and Spencer will freak if we're gone at lunch, too. Aria was in math with us earlier, remember?"

Hanna snapped out of her thoughts. "Yeah, okay." She slid out of the booth and picked up her belongings. "I want to stop at a gas station first."

Emily sighed. "Fine, but don't take forever."

They headed out of the restaurant and walked briskly across the parking lot, scrambling into Hanna's car. When they were buckled, Hanna turned on the car and into the street. "Hey, see if I have any missed texts. I forgot my phone's been on silent for school."

Emily rummaged through the thousands of tubes of lipgloss, eyeliners, eyeshadows, gum, mints, and money before locating Hanna's phone at the bottom of her purse.

"You have one new text message." Both girls tensed.

"Check it," Hanna ordered quietly.

Emily took a deep breath before clicking. "It's from Aria," she said with a sigh of relief.

_"Where the hell are you guys? I know Emily's with you. What's going on?"_ Emily read. Her brows furrowed. "Crap. They're probably furious."

Hanna shrugged, keeping her eyes locked on the road. "They'll get over it."

Emily switched Hanna's phone to vibrate, dropped it back into her purse and closed the clasp. She shut her eyes. "You know the drill, Han. Wake me up when we get there."

"Hey..." Hanna glanced at Emily quickly. "You bit me after all."

Emily chortled. "I guess I did, huh?"

"Your lips are soft," The words were out of her mouth before Hanna could even register what she was saying. Her blue eyes widened and she inwardly cursed.

Emily's eyes flew open. _Did I just hear that correctly? _The scenery outside flew by them as Hanna drove. Emily's nails dug into her seat. "Thanks," she said awkwardly.

"Mmhm." Hanna muttered, taking a sharp turn into a gas station near their school, nearly taking out another car in the process. She slammed on the brakes, turned off the ignition and unbuckled her belt. "Be right back. Do you want anything? Wait, of course you do. I know what you like." She scrambled out of the car and into the gas station before Emily could even move.

Emily blinked. What the heck was that? "Okay..." she said to herself.

Inside the gas station, Hanna was a bundle of nerves. She was staring at the candy. The bright lights in the gas station bounced off the colorful wrappers. If she looked up, she would see herself from ten different angles. Mirrors were placed all around the store so the owners could make sure kids didn't steal anything when they were supposed to be in school. Hanna jiggled her foot nervously, blue eyes darting back and forth between the different flavors of Skittles candy. She couldn't calm down. She tried telling herself it was because of A. That it was because of the coffee she'd had earlier that was finally kicking in. She even tried to convince herself that it was because she couldn't decide on which flavor of Skittles to purchase. Hanna tugged on the ends of her hair. Deep down, she knew why her nerves had been rattling. It was because, no matter how much Hanna didn't want to acknowledge it, she had the face the truth. And the truth was that she was slowly developing feelings for Emily that went well _beyond_ friendship. It all made sense. Why she noticed little things about Emily when she hadn't before. Why she'd suddenly felt _jealous_ when that Alice bitch from Lobster King seemed to be flirting with her. It was why Hanna had immediately noticed that Emily's lips were soft when the brunette had kissed her fingers. Why her heart felt like it was going to explode whenever Emily _smiled _at her. She let go of her hair. "If I know Emily, she's listening to her iPod and dancing," she whispered. Hanna covered her face with her hands and turned to the window. She peered through her fingers, hoping that just once, she'd be wrong about her friend. But a single, quick glance told her that Emily was indeed listening to her ipod. Hanna could just make out the white cords dangling from her ears. She watched as her brunette-haired friend sang along to whatever song she was listening to, while rocking back and forth in a jerking motion. The smallest of smiles appeared on her lips. She lowered her hands. "I can't have these feelings." Hanna shut her eyes and leaned against the rack of candy. It groaned. Candy wrappers wrinkled.

"Hanna, you're a mess. You can't have these feelings for her, okay? She's your best friend. And you know she doesn't feel the same." Fingers curled around two packs of candy and she squeezed them hard, trying to relax. "Stop, it, stop it." Hanna inhaled loudly and squared her shoulders. "You only see her as a friend. Just a friend." She stomped her left foot. "Okay? That's it." But saying it felt wrong. She was lying to herself. Again.

"Hey lady!"

Hanna jumped.

"Lady, are you just gonna stand there all day or somethin'?"

Hanna glanced down. A boy wearing a red baseball cap and dressed in baggy clothes was standing in front of her with his arms crossed. He had on fake gold chins and a fake, at least Hanna _hoped_ it was fake, piercing in his ear. He must have been around ten or eleven. Sighing, she skittered to the side. "Sorry."

The mini thug-wannabe picked up two candy bars and stalked to the counter. Hanna watched him leave._ What a little punk. Where are his parents?_

Just then, a car horn blared. Hanna's head snapped to the large windows. Emily was waving frantically and pointing to her phone. She mouthed, "WE NEED TO GO!"

Hanna let out a puff of air. Shit. School. She'd forgotten about stupid school. She scooped up the rest of the Skittles bags she could find into her arms and dumped them on the counter. The cashier raised his eyebrows.

"Uh, is that all? You have a sweet tooth, don't you?"

Hanna merely blinked, pulled out her last, crumpled ten dollar bill, and dropped it on the counter. Her hands moved quickly as she stuffed the candy into her purse. When she got in her car, she tossed her purse in Emily's lap and jammed the key into the ignition, the car roaring to life.

"...Did you buy all of the Skittles?" Emily had opened Hanna's purse and was peering inside.

"They're not just for me. I got some for you, too. _Duh_, Emmykins."

Emily's face flushed at the use of her nickname. Sooner than the girls would have liked, they were pulling into the students' parking lot at Rosewood High School, and Hanna was shifting into park. "Remember," Hanna said as she slid her arms into the straps on her backpack and climbed out of her car, "we have to go in the back entrance. We'll definitely get busted if we go through the front."

"Yes, Captain Marin!" Emily giggled, grabbing her own bags and handing Hanna her purse. "Are you sure you won't break a nail carrying your backpack?"

Hanna looped her arm through Emily's and started to drag her to the doors. "You're such a goofball."

"But I'm your goofball." A pause. "Right?"

"Of course." Hanna yanked Emily inside the quiet, dimly lit school and up the stairs. "We can catch the fifteen minutes of chem. Not that it matters, because-" Hanna stopped so suddenly that Emily crashed into her from behind.

"Why did you stop?" Emily peeked around her friend and immediately got her answer. Mr. Edwards was just down the hall. He was failing his arms about, yelling at a boy. "Crap," Emily muttered. "He's right in front of our chem room. Han, if he see us, we're finished. He's probably still ticked at us for this morning."

Hanna tossed her blond hair over a shoulder, eyes narrowing sharply at their teacher as she spoke."He can't do anything to us, Em." She tugged on her arm. "Just walk."

Emily jerked Hanna back. "Han, we're dead meet if he catches us. We can't lie our way out of this one."

Hanna laced her fingers together. "You're right. Crap." Blue eyes landed on a door to the janitorial closet. "Follow me." Hanna tromped over to the closet, opened and slipped inside. She stuck her head out. "Are you coming or what?"

"I-I don't know, Hanna."

"Emily Fields, you get your butt in here this instant!"

Emily stole a glance at Mr. Edwards. She couldn't make out what he was saying, but she could tell by his body language that he was not happy. Lowering her shoulders, Emily slid into the closet and pulled the door shut behind them. The room smelt strongly of lemon pledge, chalk, dust and mothballs. "This is disgusting." Both of them threw their backpacks and purses on the floor.

"Would you rather be in detention?"

"No!"

Hanna kicked a bucket out of her way and pressed herself against the shelf in the back. Her eyes widened at the sight of a spiderweb. "Oh my gosh, there are spiders in here!" She started to nervously draw circles on the floor with her feet.

Emily chuckled. "Careful, they might bite."

"They wouldn't be the only thing that's bitten me today."

Emily's face flared. "That was an accident!" She stifled a yawn and leaned against the closed door. _"Anyway,_ I've made up a new rule. From now, the latest we go to bed is one 'o clock."

Hanna rolled her eyes. "One o' clock a.m.? You're kidding," she said, continuing the circular motion of her feet She stomped her feet absentmindedly and a small _thunk_ was heard. Her eyes flashed to the floor. Her foot had gotten stuck in the same bucket she'd kicked out of her way when they'd first entered the closet. Her eyes widened and she grasped her leg. "Em, uh, I -I think I'm stuck."

Emily snorted with laughter. "Great job. Just yank your foot out."

Hanna threw her arms back and knocked an empty box off the shelf behind her. "I can't! It's not like I'm wearing flats. My foot just won't slide out." She looked pleadingly at Emily. "He-e-lp!" she whined.

Emily couldn't help but smirk. Hanna looked _adorable_ when she was pouting. "Say please."

"_Emily_."

"_Hanna_."

A groan of frustration escaped Hanna's lips. "Please_._"

"Please what?" Emily's smirk widened.

Hanna glared. "_Please,_ help me free my foot from this bucket!"

Emily smiled. "Much better, Han." She walked over to Hanna and hesitatingly wrapped her arms around her waist. "Um, j-just hold onto me."

Hanna stiffened noticeably in Emily's arms and slowly held onto her shoulders. "Okay. P-pull."

Emily shut her eyes. "W-what?" _Focus, Emily._ She shook her head. "Oh, right." Emily took a deep breath and pulled as hard as she could. Hanna's foot slid out of the bucket with a soft _pop_ and she fell forward, crashing into Emily and pinning her against the door. Their eyes locked. Hanna bit down on her tongue. She suddenly couldn't breathe. They were staring into each other's eyes so intently that both of them missed the quiet jingle coming from the inside of Emily's purse.

"M-mind moving?" Emily squeaked. Her palms felt sweaty. Move, move, move. Please.

"...What?" Hanna cleared her throat. "Oh, I mean, of course." She moved away quickly, dusting off her jeans.

Emily sighed with relief. But she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. She fumbled for the doorknob and twisted it. It didn't budge. Her rich-cafe eyes widened in alarm. "..Hanna," she laughed nervously, "I think we're trapped."

Hanna's eyebrows shot up. "What? Are you sure?" She stepped up besides her. "Let me try."

Emily folded her arms. "I'm positive!" She shifted to the side. "We're stuck in here. Um, at least the room smells like lemon pledge?"

Hanna paused. "Like that's a good thing! It makes me want to puke." She desperately turned the doorknob. Nothing happened. She rattled it. "Can't this stupid thing just open? Of all things our school decides to save money, they choose crappy doorknobs?"

Emily giggled. "I guess not." She grabbed a bucket, turned it over and plopped down. "Might as well get comfortable, Han. We're going to be here for a while."

* * *

><p>Aria pressed her fingers over her eyes and pushed open the door to the chemistry classroom across the hall of their own. "Han? Em? If you guys are, um... not decent, let me know."<p>

Spencer pushed past Aria. "You're ridiculous. They're not even in here." She pulled Aria's hand away from her face and gestured toward the empty room. "See?" They'd been roaming the school in search of their friends since they'd left chemistry. So far, they'd be unsuccessful in finding them and Hanna had never responded to Aria's text. Spencer had just texted Emily a few minutes ago, and was anxiously awaiting her reply. "We've looked everywhere. In the girls' locker room, in classrooms, in bathrooms," she listed each one off her fingers. "Our search has led us back righ where we started." They left the classroom and continued down the hall. "Do you think they're okay?" She bit her lip worriedly.

Aria nodded. "Why wouldn't they be? They're probably just goofing off somewhere."_ Or enjoying each other's company._

"Yeah," Spencer said bitterly._ They better not be dating. Don't they realize how ridiculous that is? I can't even fathom this._ Spencer outstretched her hand to fix Aria's headband, and Aria slapped it away.

"Stop that!" Aria cried, running a few feet ahead of her. "It's irritating."

Spencer snorted. "Then keep it straight! You know I can't help myself!"

Aria muttered under breath and bent over to tie her unlaced shoe before Spencer took it upon herself to do so.

* * *

><p>The silence between Hanna and Emily was unbearable. Both girls had the other on her mind, yet neither of them knew what to say to each other.<p>

Emily ran her tongue over her teeth. "Oh!" she cried suddenly.

Hanna looked up from studying the dirty floor. She had dusted off a box and was sitting with her knees up to her chest, leaning forward. Her elbows were digging into her knees. "What?" Her brows knitted together.

Emily tapped her palms against her knees to an imaginary beat. "I was serious about earlier. We can't keep staying up until four." She chuckled. "You're at my house so often, you might as well just move in. You can host your fashion shows in my bathroom. My mom would_ love_ that."

Hanna snickered. "Right, because bathrooms are so_ glamorous_." She nodded seriously.

"I know. We've talked about this, remember? We can fit more people in my bathtub." Emily winked and smoothed out the wrinkles in her jeans. "I wonder how bad the rumor is. Hah, like we'd actually date." She watched Hanna carefully to gage her reaction. _I'd die of happiness if that happened._

_Do you really think it'd be a bad thing if we dated, Em? I think we both know there's something there._ Hanna faked a laugh. "R-right. People are so gullible. Anyway," She gazed around the room. "New York is great, isn't it?"

"New York?" Emily repeated, confused. She punched her lightly. "I'll take you there."

"First class?" Hanna wiggled her eyebrows.

"Nothing less, Han."

Hanna shot Emily a small smile_. This is too difficult. Much too difficult._ "Ok. So, I think we should talk."

Emily's heart slammed against her ribcage. Uh-oh. She casted her eyes downwards. "About what?" _I think she's going to reject me before anything even happens. I shouldn't have told the class we were dating. Even if it was a lie. Crud, she probably knows how I feel about her._

"Emily," Hanna said softly. "Look at me. Please."

Emily raised her eyes to meet Hanna's. "Yeah?"

Hanna shut her eyes, breathing in through her nose._ I just shut my eyes after telling her to look at me. She'll think I'm crazy. Maybe I am. _

Emily stared at Hanna, not blinking. Tell me, Hanna. Tell me before I explode.

Hanna opened her eyes timidly. "I-it's a bit more than possible that we'd date."

* * *

><p>Aria straightened up, tossing her brunette locks over her shoulder. "Spencer," she said slowly, turning to look at her friend, "w-what if A got them?"<p>

"A?" Spencer gave Aria an you've-got-to-be-kidding look. "We're in school. I-I know A attends school with us, but I doubt A would just drag them off."

Aria played with her chunky necklace. "A could have lured them away."

Spencer shook her head. "No, I think they're fine. I-" she broke off suddenly, hearing soft voices coming from the janitor's closet. "Wait, listen." She pressed her ear against the door, motioning for Aria to follow suit. Aria frowned, leaning against the door. There were definitely people inside.

* * *

><p>Emily smashed her lips together. "W-what do you mean?" Out of habit, she started to trace the letters on her bracelet Alison had given her.<p>

Hanna exhaled deeply. This is it. "I think- The door flew open. Spencer and Aria stared at them in shock. Emily and Hanna stared back.

"Holy crap," Spencer backed away from the door. "Aria, it _is_ true."

Hanna leapt to her feet. "Oh, thank goodness," she exclaimed, snatching up her backpack and purse. "I thought we'd be stuck in there forever." She sauntered out into the hall.

Emily followed behind her quietly. She hoisted her backpack onto her shoulders. "Hey, guys." She smiled sheepishly, offering them a three-finger wave.

Spencer looked back and forth between Hanna and Emily. "What the HELL is wrong with you guys?" she half-shouted. "We've been looking for you two everywhere, and you've been in a closet the whole time, making out? Were you ever going to come out?"

Emily frowned. "Um, actually, I've been out of the closet," she joked meekly.

Hanna smirked. _Oh, Em_. She raised her eyebrows. _So, they have heard the rumors. Wow._ "Whoa, hold on a second, Spencer." The blond held her hands up in self-defense. "We were not making out. We were trapped in there. I guess the door, for some reason, locks from the inside when it's shut." She shrugged. "We ditched chem and went to eat. No big deal."

Spencer looked baffled. "No big _deal?_" She tossed her hands up. "We've been worried sick! Do you guys know what people are saying about the two of you?"

"Spencer, calm down," Aria said quietly. "Give Thelma and Louise a chance to explain."

Spencer sighed. "All right," She leaned against a row of lockers and crossed her ankles. She couldn't stop herself from noticing that Hanna had lost a button on her blouse. _Please tell me that button has been missing and it wasn't because of Emily. _Spencer squared her shoulders."Explain."

Hanna peeked at Emily. "Wait. Am I Thelma or Louise?"

"Hanna!" Spencer snapped. "Just tell us!"

Hanna clucked her tongue. "We were in history," she started slowly.

"-And we were writing notes back and forth. Like always," Emily continued. Her eyes were locked on a Hugs, Not Drugs! poster above Spencer's head. How cheesy.

"-We were joking about Mr. Edwards being a pedophile. And he caught me with the note. Emily grabbed it before he could, and told her to read it out loud." Hanna glanced at Emily again. She was biting her lip nervously. She does a lot. Okay, Marin, stop staring. It's creepy.

"-I lied. I couldn't read what was written in the note. You know it would have gotten around and the school board would have taken it seriously. I knew if I had said it was something stupid, Mr. Edwards would have wanted to read it himself. So..." Her eyes went from the poster to the clock. In just a few minutes, it would be lunchtime. "I said we were dating and that I-was in love with Hanna. I knew it had to be believable. I'm gay and we're always together, so..." She shrugged. "He didn't check. Now, people think we're dating. But we're not. It was a lie. Just another lie that we told."_ Except I want it to be true._

Silence. Even the clocked seemed to have stopped ticking. Spencer pushed herself off the lockers. Thank goodness. I'm glad there's a reasonable explanation for this. They can't date. She exhaled sharply. "I'm sorry for snapping. I was just ...upset." She grinned. "It's sad how people will believe anything in this school."

Aria cocked her head. "Okay." She clasped her hands together. "Well, at least everything is sorted out."

The bell rang above them, signaling the end of the hour. Classroom doors banged open and kids began filing out into the halls. What was once a quiet, calm hallway became loud and chaotic almost instantly. The girls stood still as their peers passed them, none of them saying a word. Hanna glared at a sophomore girl who pointed to Emily and whispered something to her fair-haired friend._ Bitch._

"ARE YOU GUYS READY FOR LUNCH?" Aria yelled to be heard over the crowd.

"YES," Spencer yelled back. Emily shrugged silently.

Hanna's purse vibrated and she could see her phone lighting up through the material. Her heart skipped a beat. She whipped her phone out of her purse and immediately checked her text. Her eyes widened.

"Han?" Emily's voice floated over to her. Her head snapped up. Emily, Spencer and Aria were all staring at her.

"Is it-"

"It's my mom," Hanna interrupted. "She just told me to make sure I make dinner tonight when I get home." She rolled her eyes. "As if I didn't already know that."

Spencer laughed and looped her arm through Aria's offering Emily her other arm. "Well? Shall we?"

Hanna smiled tightly. "Sure," she whispered. She glanced down at her phone once more.

_Hannakins,_

_Emily just doesn't have a track-record for the butterfly stroke. She always falls in love with her best friends, huh? Guess who? -A_

* * *

><p>;) Ooh. A always has to butt in. What did you guys think? Leave a pretty little review, if you'd like. More to come soon!<p>

~S


	5. Resurfaced Memories

Hey, guys! Another chapter is up! It's long, sorry xD. There's not a lot of Hemily in this one, but I promise, the next chapter will have it. I love all of you! Your positive reviews make me smile. Thank you so much. Enjoy! 3

* * *

><p>"Am I supposed to <em>eat<em> this?" Spencer shoved her plastic fork into the meat-like substance that took up half of the space on her lunch tray. "It doesn't look very appetizing." The girls were seated at a table in the middle of the cafeteria. Aria and Spencer sat on one side and Hanna and Emily took up the bench across from them. Spencer and Aria were the only two with trays of food in front of them. Hanna and Emily were munching on Skittles and washing them down with cartons of chocolate milk.

Emily shrugged. "If you don't want to starve you are. I'm just glad I already ate."

Spencer snorted. "Only because you and Barbie over here decided to go AWOL."

Aria stabbed a piece of lettuce with her fork and popped it in her mouth. "Barbie and Jen wanted to have some fun, Spence. I'm just disappointed they didn't ask us to go with them." She clucked her tongue in annoyance. "We could have used a break too, you know."

Hanna and Emily exchanged a glance. "Jen?" they repeated in unison.

"Yeah, you know, like Ken? Except you're a girl, Em. And wasn't 'Jen' the name of one of Barbie's friends?" Her eyes snapped over to another table where Noel Kahn and Sean Ackard were _inconspicuously_ playing a game of poker. Noel had a large pile of money in front of him and several bottles of Pepsi. Aria snorted and gestured toward the table. "As if he needs more money," she grumbled.

Three pairs of eyes followed Aria's gaze. "He's cheating," remarked Spencer with a huff. "How the hell is he so popular?"

"Money," Aria clarified.

"His athleticism," Emily added, watching as Sean threw his cards down in defeat. "Right, Han?"

But Hanna was too busy staring at a colorful poster on the wall behind Noel's table to contribute to the conversation. The purple, pink and blue loopy lettering jumped out at her.

_**Confused?**_

_**Lost?**_

_**Struggling with your sexual orientation?**_

_**You are not alone. If you are confused about your sexual orientation or would like to be a part of the LBGT, then come to our meeting on October 12th, 2011 at 7:00PM at Rosewood Community Hall. For more information, please call 812- 235-7642**_

_October twelfth? What if...I went? Or talked to them? I have no idea what's going on with me_.

Hanna felt a gentle hand on her shoulder and nearly jumped out of her skin. "W-what?"

"Are you okay?" Emily asked, eyes burning with concern. Spencer and Aria looked at her worriedly.

"I'm fine," Hanna responded cooly. _Liar,_ her conscience sniped. _You can at least tell Emily the truth._ "I was just wondering how someone as sleazy as Noel has so many friends." _Hell will freeze over before I tell Emily the truth._

"It's his money, I'm telling you guys."

"It's obviously not his intelligence," Spencer giggled.

Hanna sighed. "I'll be back. I need something else to drink." She swung her legs over the side the bench and made her way toward the the vending machines which the poster was conveniently next to. Just as she was nearing the juice machine, her path was blocked by one Mr. Noel Kahn.

_"Hey,_ Hanna," he drawled, flashing her a winning smile. "'Sup?" He twisted his cap backwards and folded his arms.

Hanna rolled her eyes. "What do you want?"

Noel smirked. "Why the hostility? Can't a guy say hi?"

"A _guy_ can say hi, but I didn't know _apes_ could talk. You should head to a science center. They'll be fascinated with you," Hanna simpered frostily.

Noel arched a bushy eyebrow. "Well, you're cheerful. What's the matter?" His eyes drifted over to Emily, Aria Spencer. "Problems in dyke land got you down?" He pushed her playfully. "Hey, is Emily a good kisser? You guys should let me watch. That'd be _so_ hot."

Hanna's expression darkened. Her hands curled into fists. The air stilled around them. "Noel," she seethed, "don't you _ever_ say anything like that again, or I swear-"

"Hey, calm down." Noel held his hands up. "I was kidding." There was a brief paused as a freshman kid pushed between them. "Seriously, _is_ she? I always thought you two were dating."

"We're not dating," Hanna mumbled.

"That's not what everyone else is saying." Noel smirked again. "How is she in bed?" He wiggled his eyebrows. "Is shy, sweet Emily a fierce _temptress_ behind closed doors?"

Hanna growled low in her throat. "Get. Out. Of. My. Way," she said through clenched teeth. She shoved past Noel. _Asshole_. She stalked over to the vending machine closest to the poster. Her eyes filled with tears. She didn't like having these feelings for Emily. There was nothing wrong with liking another girl, but...Emily probably loved Spencer or Aria. The labels on the vending machine suddenly became blurry. She couldn't tell which one was orange juice and which one was grape. She rested her forehead against the cool machine.

"Dammit, Emily," she cursed under her breath. "Why are you doing to this to me?"

Hanna turned and leaned back against the vending machine. Round, watery-blue eyes swept over the crowded cafeteria. Her eyes fell on the back of Emily's head. Even her hair is gorgeous. Emily was moving her arms animatedly as she spoke, probably telling Spencer and Aria about their outing. Just then, Spencer reached across the table and tucked a lock of Emily's hair behind her ear. Hanna's insides bubbled with jealously.

_Emily always falls for her best friends, huh? Guess who?_

A's text flashed in her mind. Hanna inhaled deeply. Did Emily have feelings for _Spencer?_ Hanna felt her chest tighten at the thought of Emily having feelings for anyone else but her. It physically hurt her to know that Emily may not return her feelings. Hanna marched over to the poster, tore off the bottom with the number and date on it, and stuffed it in her pocket.

"Who am I kidding?" Hanna whispered as she maneuvered her way around the lunch tables, hearing bits and pieces of numerous conversations. Of course they were all about the school's hottest, newest couple.

"-Dating. All this time."

"-Yup, Hanna Marin and Emily Fields."

"-They're so hot together. I wonder how far they've gone."

Hanna snorted._ Typical. Don't you people have anything else to talk about?_ Agitated, she plopped down so close next to Emily that their shoulders were touching.

"There, you are," Emily grinned. "Did you get lost?"

"Nah." Blond locks smacked Emily in the face as Hanna shook her head. "I just couldn't decide what to buy."

Aria laughed. "Well, we know you don't need any more Skittles."

"I can't even believe you bought all of those. Don't you want to spend your money more carefully?" Spencer inquired, taking a sip out of her Aquafina water bottle. "Anyway, you guys missed a lab in chem."

Emily's mouth dropped "What?" she gasped. "We didn't watch a movie?"

Spencer shook her head. "We're doing that Monday. We voted as a class to either watch the movie today or Monday. We decided to get the lab out of the way."

Hanna groaned and hit the lunch table with her forehead._ Perfect. Can things get any worse?_

Spencer shrugged. "You two should not have skipped. You know how important education is."

_We don't need a lecture,_ Hanna thought bitterly.

Emily sighed. "Spencer, we skipped a class. It was one class. We needed it. We had fun. Give us a break."

Hanna smiled. _There's my Emily. Way to go. Wait. no. Not my Emily. Ugh. Whatever._

"Anyone want to hear a joke?" Spencer asked brightly. "It's pretty vapid, but it's cute."

Hanna lifted her head from the table, fluffing her hair, shrugging._ Not from you. You're about as funny as a carrot. Whoa, calm down, Hanna. Jealously does not work well with you. Spencer is your friend. A very close friend. And what the hell does vapid mean?_

"Sure," Emily and Aria agreed.

Hanna fought the urge to roll her eyes. _I don't want to hear your stupid joke._ She shifted, accidentally knocking her knee against Emily's. A shock went through her. She sneaked a peek at Emily. Was it just her imagination or did Emily just tense?

Spencer folded her arms across the table.

Hanna crossed her ankles impatiently. She could faintly hear Noel Kahn and Sean Ackard playing another game of poker. Noel, was once again, winning. "Tell the damn joke already," she snapped, irritated. _Stop staring at Emily, Spencer. Stop it, stop it._

Spencer raised an eyebrow. "Okay, sheesh. Don't get your Victoria's Secret undies in a bunch."

Emily glanced at Hanna._ Is she really wearing underwear from Victoria's Secret?_

Spencer tossed her hair over her shoulders. "Why are E.T.'s eyes so big?"

"Why?" the three chorused.

"He saw his phone bill!"

Hanna forced a smile. "Nice." She picked up her chocolate milk and took a long sip. That was lame.

Aria smiled and took a swig out of her water bottle. "Cute," she commented.

Emily giggled, setting down her empty Skittles bag. "Aw, that _was_ cute, Spence." She reached across the table and tapped her arm lightly.

Spencer laughed. "Cute girls tell cute jokes," she said with a wink. "You've told cute jokes."

Hanna choked on her chocolate milk. The light brown liquid spewed out of her mouth. She breathed in deeply, hitting her chest.

"Are you okay?" Aria asked, eyes wide.

"Did it go down the wrong tube?" Spencer questioned.

Emily placed her hand on Hanna's shoulder and the blond immediately relaxed underneath the raven-haired girl's touch. _You're in love with Spencer, aren't you? I should have known._

"Careful, Han," Emily whispered. _Why must you be so breathtakingly beautiful? You're killing me._ She slowly removed her hand. "Are you okay now?"

Hanna nodded, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks. "Yes."_ Except I want to kiss you so hard your head will spin._

Emily smiled. "Good. So, are you two joining us tonight for our sleepover?"_ I can't stand to be alone with Hanna right now._

"Yeah, are you?" Hanna bit her nails to hide her frown. She didn't really care if she messed up her manicure-she could always just get another one. _Even though I want to be alone with Emily. I need to muster up some courage. I need to tell her._ The blond bit down hard on her nail. _What if I'm wrong and I don't have feelings for Emily? What if it's just admiration? Ugh, if only I could kiss her. Just once. To make absolutely certain._

"Duh," Aria responded, stacking her now empty tray on top of Spencer's empty one slightly crookedly.

"Wouldn't miss it," Spencer said, aligning the trays together.

"Great," the two replied. Each girl felt a mixture of disappointment and relief.

Aria chuckled. "Stop saying things at the same time. It's creepy."

"Sorry," Hanna and Emily said at the same time. They smiled at each other.

Aria rolled her eyes. The four girls stood as the bell echoed through the loud lunchroom.

"You guys can just meet at my house at six." Spencer straightened Aria's headband again.

An annoyed look flashed across Aria's face. "Come on, you two." Aria threw her arms around Emily's and Hanna's shoulders. "You're not skipping English."

_"You_ can't even pay attention in English," Hanna teased as the group made their way of the crowded cafeteria and down the hall.

"This is the Hot-For-Teacher hotline," Emily said in a high-pitched tone, "How may I direct your call?" She giggled.

Hanna smiled. _She's so cute. Emily, you're adorable._

Aria blushed furiously. "Shut up," she hissed, glancing around.

Spencer grinned. "You love us."

"Only so much, Spencer. Only so much." Aria shook her head, hiding a smile. She did love her friends. They meant the world to her.

* * *

><p>Hours later, Aria was walking slowly around her room, mentally going over a checklist for things she needed to pack for the sleepover. She stopped, squeezing her hands together tightly as her eyes landed on a bra she'd once knitted. Aria had always been the artistic one. The creative one. The<em> weird<em> one. She knitted her own clothes, conjuring up outfits that would put Lady Gaga to shame. She had postcards from countries she'd never been to tacked to a cork board above her bed. The girl had once had a pink stripe in her hair. She liked to write poetry. Words came easily to her. Similes and metaphors were second nature to the raven-haired teen. It was these simple facts that often made the girl wonder why the deceased Alison DiLaurentis had even chosen her as a friend in the first place. Maybe it was because Ali liked the fact that Aria was original. Or maybe the bitch knew Aria wouldn't be any _competition_ for her. Aria glanced around her room. The Christmas lights strung out on her ceiling were dim, but they still held a sense of festivity. The disco ball in the corner of the room on a dusty shelf needed polishing. Her bookshelf was filled with autobiographies, sketch pads, and old classics like her copy of _Where the Red Fern Grows_ that was currently peeking out between her seventh and eighth-grade yearbooks. Aria's chest tightened. She never looked at her yearbooks. Not anymore. It was too painful. Sighing, she ripped a pair of fishnets from a hanger and stuffed it in her duffle bag between her bright yellow dress and dark pink pajama bottoms. She plucked a purple top off the basket of fresh clothes that had been waiting for her when she got home and tossed that in the bag, too. Aria had been late arriving home because Noel had stopped her in the hallway, asking for Hanna's number. For some strange reason. "What else," Aria wondered out loud, socked feet padding quietly around her wooden floors. "I have all of my toiletries." Aria balled up an old Rolling Stones T-shirt and threw it in her bag. She sank down into her plushy, purple chair. She'd taken the liberty of gluing phrases and pictures on it cut out from magazines. It had been too plain for her. Expressive light-brown eyes landed on an old-framed photo of herself and the girls. She squinted. Ali was in it. She swallowed hard, picking at the word _**Dazzling**_ next to her right knee. She shut her eyes, a memory flooding back to her like water breaking through a dam.

_"I think I'd be a great costume designer," Aria said, looking upside down at Alison from her position on her beanbag chair. Alison glanced up from her Cosmopolitan, piercing blue eyes peering at Aria from the very top of the magazine._

_"You wish. You're more suited for being that person who puts makeup on the dead," she muttered easily, arching an eyebrow in amusement._

_Aria tensed. The two had been in her room for the last half hour. Alison was stretched out comfortably on Aria's bed, ankles crossed. "I would not," she shot back defensively. "I'm serious. That or a fashion designer."_

_Alison rolled her eyes, dropping the magazine on Aria's bedspread. "Fashion?" She snorted. "Please. You always embarrass me in public with the outfits you wear. I mean, God, Aria. Look at what you have on now."_

_Aria flipped over and stood up, running her fingers through her hair to smooth it out. "What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" she asked, glancing at her outfit. She had on a short, blue skirt with a red legging on her right leg and a yellow on her left. She had cut up some old, unworn shirts and sewn them onto the bright purple one she had one. The colors were bright, almost blinding._

_Ali grinned. "You look like a fucking train wreck. But then again, you always have."_

_Aria swallowed. "Whatever. Look, can't you be supportive? I even drew some dresses I want to make. It took me a month to finish them all." She pulled the faded blue sketch pad from her bookshelf, opened it and set in front of Alison, a hopeful smile on her lips._

_Annoyed, Ali's eyes snapped to the drawings. Her blue eyes widened. Damn. Aria was good. Too good._

_"Mmhm, cute." Ali picked up her magazine, flipping back from the page she was on. "Aria?"_

_"...What?"_

_"Be a dear and fetch me a water, 'kay? Sparkling, not tap."_

_Aria crossed her arms. "Get it yourself," she snapped. "Or does the doll need someone to move her arms and legs for her?"_

_Ali paused and set the magazine down. "That wasn't a request," she said flatly. "It was a command. Go get me some sparkling water, Aria. Now."_

_Aria hesitated. Sighing with defeat, she'd trudged downstairs and returned moments later with a bottle of sparkling water. She handed it to Ali, the cap already off._

_Ali sat up, slid off the bed and turned the bottle upside down, drenching Aria's sketchbook, magazine and bedspread with water._

_Aria's eyes widened with horror. "W-what did you-"_

_"Oops," the blond said with a giggle. She thrusted the bottle into Aria's hands and locked eyes with the shorter girl. "And I was actually going to drink that." She paused. "Don't you dare disobey me again." Without another word, Ali walked from her room and out of her house._

Aria snapped out of her memory. Ali had ruined her magazine and sketches. The bedspread had been easy to clean up, but...all of her hard work had been destroyed. The day after the sketchbook incident, Ali had acted like nothing had happened. Later, when they were all together, Ali had remarked, "Aria would be a fantastic fashion designer, guys." Never before had Aria wanted to rip Ali's head off more than she had in that moment. With a sigh, Aria grabbed her bag, flung it over shoulder and stomped down the stairs, saying goodbye to her family and snatching her keys off the hook in the kitchen. She stepped out into the bright sun light, climbing in her car. "I hate you, Alison," she grumbled as she drove to Spencer's. The ride was short. She parked, hopped out and knocked on the brunette's door.

* * *

><p>"Okay, everything is all set. Pop, chips, a veggie tray..." Spencer was in her kitchen, making sure she had everything perfectly setup for the twelfth time. In under <em>twenty<em> minutes. The girls would arrive any minute now. Nothing could be out of place. The smell of freshly-baked brownies floated around the room. Extra fudge. What was a sleepover without brownies? Spencer hopped from the bowl of chips to a plate of finger sandwiches, making sure each one was cut into a perfect triangle. She'd been fidgety all afternoon, like she'd downed ten cups of coffee in a row. Spencer still felt bad about snapping at Hanna and Emily when the two of them had done nothing wrong. "When they get here, I'll apologize again," the brunette muttered to herself, moving a blue plastic cup to align with the others. Her OCD was really starting to drive her insane. Spencer peered around the living room. Everything was spotless. Even the damn mountain made out of blankets and pillows matched the colors of the living room's walls. Lights reflected off the glass coffee table Spencer had pushed aside. She was just glad that her parents and Melissa were out of town for the weekend, celebrating yet _another_ one of Melissa's accomplishments. They wouldn't be bugged. Spencer exhaled when her eyes landed on her field hockey stick propped up against the wall, half hidden by the large floor plant her parents had brought back from Jamaica. She plucked a black throw pillow from her couch and started twisting it in her hands, eyes never leaving her field hockey stick.

_"Yes!" Spencer cheered, scoring her tenth goal in a row. She was on a roll today. She gripped her stick tightly, aiming it precisely at a tennis ball, eyes fixed straight onto the goal. "Did you see that, Ali?"_

_Alison was stretched out lazily on one of Spencer's lawn chairs, dressed in a skimpy bikini. Gucci sunglasses protected brilliant-blue eyes from the sun's harsh rays. Freshly-painted, pink fingernails loosely held onto a reflective tray. Alison was convinced she wasn't tan enough. She pushed her glasses down her nose. "Only ten?" She scoffed. "You're losing it, Spence. I can score twenty in under a minute. But that's just one more thing I excel at." She pushed her glasses back up her nose._

_"Don't try to fudge the truth, Ali," Spencer said with roll of her eyes. All day long, Alison had been making snide comments about Spencer's field hockey (or lack of, as Ali said) skills. "You know damn well I can kick your butt any day of the week." To prove her point, she smacked the rest of the balls at a fast speed, each one flying into the middle of the net. She smirked in triumph, turning back to the ice queen. "See?"_

_Ali rolled her eyes. "I can still do better." She reached over and grabbed her water bottle, taking a long sip. "You're not holding your stick properly," she added once she set her water bottle back down. Ali pushed herself up off the lawn chair gracefully and motioned for Spencer to come over. _

_Spencer walked over to the blond. "What?"_

_"First off, you're holding onto it much too tightly. Loosen your grip," Ali instructed, taking off her sunglasses and setting them next to her water bottle. _

_Spencer snorted. "I know how to hold a field hockey stick, thank you." But her grip relaxed just a bit._

_Alison sneered. "You're pathetic. You can never do anything right. You're always trying to one-up me." She placed her hands on her dainty hips. "Spencer Hastings isn't perfect. She's a lowlife, wannabe, boyfriend-stealing bitch."_

_Spencer's expression clouded over. "Shut up," she growled. "You're not so glamorous either."_

_Alison's eyes narrowed sharply. "Do you know who you're talking to? I'd watch your mouth, Spencer. You'll regret it."_

_Spencer held up her hands in mock horror, walking behind Ali to take a sip out of her own water bottle. "I'm terrified."_

_Alison watched her. "I can destroy you, Spencer. I made you who you are. I made all of you." _

_Spencer set her water bottle down with more force than necessary and it toppled over, spilling over freshly-mowed grass. She turned and stared at Alison, choosing to ignore her remark. "You know, one of these days, you're going to go too far and really piss someone off. Then see what happens to you."_

_Alison laughed coldly. Without so much as a warning, she grasped Spencer's shoulders, slamming her into the brick wall of her house, smirking when Spencer cried out in pain. "You really need to learn your place, Hastings," she spat, starting venomously into her eyes._

_Spencer dropped her field hockey stick and forcibly pushed Ali away. Alison stumbled, almost falling. She glared at Spencer, picked up her purse and slid on her sunglasses. "I'm out of here. I'll get my clothes later." Alison started to walk away. "If I were you, I'd do the world a favor and commit suicide already. It's bound to happen sooner or later. Not that your parents would care, they have Melissa."_

_Spencer snatched up her field hockey stick, storming after Ali. She raised it over her her head, ready to crack Ali's skull in half. At the last second, she flung it to the side and it bounced off a tree. Without saying goodbye, Spencer stormed into her house._

Spencer blinked rapidly, her living room slowly coming back into focus. She swallowed hard, trying to push the memory out of her head. A knock sounded on the door and Spencer shot to her feet, racing to the door. She flung it open. "Hey, Aria!"

"Hey, Spence," Aria replied, grinning. Aria walked into Spencer's house, kicking off her shoes. "Are Em and Hanna here yet?"

"Not yet."

Aria frowned. "They better not bail on us."

"They won't!" But Spencer didn't sound certain. Lately, instead of the four of them, it had been Hanna and Emily. "Want to help me finish setting up?" Spencer asked, walking back to her living room.

Aria nodded, following. "This sleepover is going to be amazing." At least she hoped it would be.

* * *

><p>Yay! So, what did you guys think? Alison was a bitch, huh? :( Poor Spencer and Aria.<p>

;) Be prepared for the next chapter.

~ S


	6. A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

Hey, guys! Another chapter is up. This chapter is _very_ long! I hope you guys enjoy it! So, it's 6:05A.M. currently and I'm updating. Lovely. D: But I can't get back to sleep! Once again, I want to thank each and every one of you for sticking with this story. You all are so amazing! Anyway, I'll shut up. Onto the chapter!

* * *

><p>"You won't be drinking alcohol at your sleepover."<p>

"I know."

"You won't be smoking anything."

"I know."

"You won't be snorting, huffing or inhaling any drugs. Or shooting up."

"I _know._"

Emily was walking around her room, throwing clothes into her swimming bag. Her mother, Pam Fields, stood in the doorway. She held a notebook in her hand and a pen in the other. Since Emily had told her mom that she'd be spending the night with her friends, Pam had followed Emily around her room as she packed, reading her a list of rules, that Emily, was _absolutely_ going to follow if she wanted to be hanging out with her friends.

"Hmm," Emily paused, deciding between a zebra striped T-shirt and a dark red tank top. _Which one would Hanna like?_ she couldn't help but ask herself. Zebra striped or tank top? Which one would she look cute in? In the end, Emily balled up the tank top and tossed it in her bag. _It shows a lot more skin_. Not that she wanted Hanna to notice or anything.

"Emily."

"What?" Emily picked up a pair of jeans that she'd left on her computer chair and turned to her mom.

"You won't be having any _boys_ over Spencer's house. Do you understand me, Emily Fields?"

Emily wanted to laugh. Boys? Uh, no. At least not for her. Emily turned away and picked up a peace sign necklace so her mom wouldn't see her grin. "Of course not! There won't be any boys there." _But there will be a hot blond there that I can't seem to stop staring at._ Emily snapped the necklace on. She was almost ready to go. After she'd arrived home from swim practice, Emily had showered and immediately gotten a bag together, eager to spend a night with her friends. Especially Hanna. _She doesn't even know how insane she drives me._

Pam's cell phone went off, and she pulled it out of her pocket. "I need to take this. Finish up packing." Pam quickly tromped down the stairs.

"Finally," Emily muttered, relieved she was alone. Emily loved her mom, but _damn_ was she annoying. As Emily turned to her bag, a stuffed lion on her shelf caught her eye. Emily swallowed hard. Her legs moved robotically toward the stuffed animal. She grabbed it by its tale, and squeezed it, sliding down to the floor and pulling her knees up to her chest. "Ali..."

_"Oh, Emmilyyyyyy," Ali sing-songed, waltzing into Emily's room, holding a stuffed lion._

_Emily, who was doing her history homework on her bed, brightened as soon as she soon she heard the syrupy-sweet voice. "Hey, Ali," she breathed._

_Alison smiled broadly, pushed Emily's history textbook off her bed and sat down across from her. "Hey," she grinned, wiggling her eyebrows. "Meet your new friend." Ali shoved the wide-eyed lion into Emily's lap. "My parents dragged me to the zoo today," she explained with a roll of her eyes. "I saw this, and thought of you. Lions are protective creatures. So are you."_

_Emily's heart skipped a beat. She smiled down at the lion, playing with its mane. "Thanks," she whispered, touched._

_"You're welcome, Em." She shifted closer, amused at the way Emily stiffened almost instantly. "I've never had a friend like you before."_

_Emily looked up, surprised. "What?"_

_"Em, you're so, so sweet. You really understand me." Ali took Emily's hands in her own and squeezed lightly._

_Emily's eyes shot down to Ali's hands. Her chest swelled. "I know. Someone has to."_

_Ali moved even closer, shooting her a flirty smile. "Exactly."_

_Emily watched her anxiously. Before she knew what was happening, Alison had pinned her down on her bed, the stuffed lion now on the floor. "W-what are you doing?" she squeaked._

_"What time is it?" Ali asked, ignoring Emily's question._

_Emily peeked at her digital clock. "T-ten past four," she answered shakily._

_Ali smirked. "Articulate today, aren't we?" Ali leaned down, pressing her lips to Emily's neck._

_Emily's entire body froze. What. The Hell? "A-Ali," she croaked, eyes fluttering shut. "W-what are you DOING?"_

_Ali covered Emily's mouth with her hand firmly. "Stop talking." Alison moved to Emily's collarbone and she traced it with a finger._

_Emily inhaled slowly, head spinning. Ali's hand rose slightly off her mouth._

_"Now what time is it?"_

_"W-what?"_

_Ali snickered. "What. Time. Is. It?" she repeated slowly._

_Emily's eyes flashed to her clock. "F-four thirteen."_

_Alison sat up, pulling Emily up with her. Ali slid her arms around Emily's neck, tugging the anxiety-filled girl closer to her. "Kiss me."_

_"...Excuse me?"_

_"Kiss me, Em. I know you want to kiss me."_

_Emily's hands trembled. "W-why?" she croaked loudly._

_"Just do it. Before I change my mind."_

_Swallowing, Emily leaned forward, kissing Ali softly on the lips. Explosions went off in her head. Her blood rushed through her veins. Excitement surged through her when Ali began to kiss back._

_And then..._

_"What the fuck?" a shrill voice shrieked._

_Alison pushed Emily away instantly, a disgusted look on her face. "Emily, what the hell?"_

_Emily's eyes snapped to the door. Hanna stood in her doorway, a Starbucks cup clenched tightly in one hand, and shopping bag from Forever 21 dangling from her bracelet- covered wrist. Her blue eyes were wide. Emily's mouth formed an 'O' of surprise. "I..."_

_Alison sprang off the bed. Her golden hair shined from the sunlight peering through Emily's window. She smacked her lips. "Why did you kiss me?"_

_Emily shook her head, hard. "Y-you kissed me first," she stammered._

_Alison barked out a laugh. "In your dreams, Emily." Alison glanced at Hanna. "Go wait outside. I'll be down in a minute."_

_Hanna's eyes darted back and forth between the two, bewildered. Her gaze lingered on Emily. Something flashed across her face, but then it was gone. "Um..."_

_"Hanna. Now."_

_Wordlessly, Hanna turned and bolted down the stairs. The sound of the front door slamming echoed seconds after._

_Silence._

_"W-what was that?" Emily finally asked, not daring to look up._

_Alison fluffed her hair in the mirror on Emily's desk. "Hanna has horrible timing."_

_Realization slowly clicked into place. "D-id you set me up?"_

_Ali arched an eyebrow, spinning around. "Now, why would I want to do that?"_

_Emily was quiet._

_"I just wanted to use a test dummy before I met up with my boyfriend tonight." Alison could almost hear Emily's heart breaking. Again. It was a satisfying sound.. Ali strode over to Emily's lion, scooped it up off the floor, and tossed it to her. . Ali walked to the door, but then stopped, turned back around and sauntered over to the brunette. "Em?"_

_Emily forced herself to look up._

_Ali bent down so she was eye level with Emily. "You're so sexy," she whispered in a sultry tone before pecking her on the lips. Almost as soon as she had kissed hde, Ali pulled away and gave Emily a sly smile. "Toodles," she said, walking away._

Emily was jerked out of her memory when she heard her mother calling for her.

"EMILY, ARE YOU READY?" Pam screamed from downstairs.

"YEAH," Emily yelled back. Her eyes drifted down to her lion, and her chest constricted. Ali was always messing with her mind. Her heart. Ali had been _such_ a tease. Emily touched her finger to her lips. It was like she could almost taste Alison's cherry-flavored Chapstick. Even though it was physically impossible.

"EMILY!"

"I'M COMING," Emily screamed. _God_. Shaking her head, Emily stood up and gently placed the stuffed lion back on her shelf. Emily's mother was driving her to Spencer's because she "wanted to make sure Emily got there safely". Whatever. Emily was positive that her mother just wanted to lecture her on something ridiculous, like the dangers of watching soap operas. Snatching up her bag, Emily hurried downstairs.

"What were you doing up there?" Pam asked, hands on her hips.

"I was making sure I had everything," Emily replied, rushing outside. "Sorry."

Pam locked the door, following her daughter. "Emily, you better follow all of the rules."

"I know, Mom! Okay? I know."

"Emily Fields! If you want to go to your sleepover, you will not speak to me in that tone." Pam unlocked the car, sliding into the driver's seat. "Do I make myself clear?" she asked once her daughter was seated in the passenger seat.

"Okay, sorry," Emily mumbled.

"What are the rules?" Pam asked as she turned the car on and started down the street. "I want to make sure you know them."

Emily rolled her eyes. "No drinking."

"And?"

"No smoking or doing any sort of drugs."

"And?"

"And we won't have any boys there."_ Mother, you're ridiculous. _Emily played with a swimming ribbon she'd pinned to her bag. They couldn't get to Spencer's fast enough.

"Can one of your friends give you a ride home tomorrow? I have a meeting with the pastor in the morning." Pam asked, pulling into Spencer's driveway.

"Sure." Emily unbuckled her seatbelt. _Of course you do._ "Bye!" Emily grabbed her bag and shot of the car. The door opened just as she was about to knock. "Hey, Spence," Emily muttered, ducking around her and into the hall.

"Uh, hi." Spencer waved to Mrs. Fields and shut the door. When Spencer turned around, she was smirking. "Did she lecture you _again?"_

"Yes," Emily groaned. "She wouldn't shut up!"

Spencer snickered, leading Emily to her living room. Emily's eyes scanned the room eagerly, hoping to see a certain blond. Her heart dropped slightly when she noticed Hanna had yet to arrive. "Hey, Aria," Emily greeted, sitting down on Spencer's family's couch. "What are you you drawing?" she inquired, gesturing to an open sketchpad propped up by the other girl's knees.

"Stuff," Aria murmured back. After Aria and Spencer had finished setting up for the sleepover, Aria had asked Spencer for a sketchpad, and she'd retreated to a spot on the floor. There was a pile of pencils (which Spencer kept coming over to align whenever Aria set one down} by her bare feet.

"Um, okay. What sort of stuff?"

"She won't tell," Spencer said, taking a seat on the floor. "I already tried asking her."

Emily arched an eyebrow. "Why the sudden need to draw at a sleepover?"

Aria's hand paused on her sketchpad. "I just need to, okay?" Her nose wrinkled and she tore off piece of paper, crumpling it on her fist and throwing it on the floor, next to the growing pile of Aria's earlier attempts to sketch.

Emily glanced at the crumpled up pieces of paper. "They look like poorly-shaped snowballs," she joked. Aria didn't laugh. Emily fidgeted uncomfortably.

Spencer's gaze focused on her field hockey stick. "You know what?" Spencer pushed herself up off the floor and stepped over Aria, plucking her field hockey stick from its place behind the plant. "I'll be back. I need to practice."

_"Now?"_ Emily asked, bewildered. "We're having a sleepover. Ar, tell her it can wait." Emily pulled off her shoes and threw them in a corner. "You practice too much anyway. Right, Aria?"

Aria didn't look up from her sketchpad. "Mhm," she mumbled. Aria's eyes narrowed and her hand moved slowly down her sketchpad.

"See, Spencer? Aria agrees." Emily turned to look at her, but Spencer was gone. A second later, the girls could hear the thwack of Spencer's field hockey stick meeting tennis balls.

Emily sighed. "Hanna Marin, you better get your butt over here soon."

* * *

><p>"MOM, WHERE'S MY BLUE SWEATSHIRT?"<p>

"WHICH ONE?" Ashley Marin hollered back.

"THE ONE I GOT FROM _PINK_," Hanna shouted. Hanna was dressed in a pair of dark skinny jeans and a tight-fitting black tank top. Her long, blond hair cascaded in soft curls down her shoulders. The light blue eyeshadow she had on made her exquisite blue eyes pop. Soft pink lips were coated in shimmery, strawberry-flavored lipgloss._ Just in case,_ she kept telling herself as she smeared it over her lips in front of her mirror.

"It was in the dryer," Ashley said, appearing in Hanna's doorway. Ashley looked around her daughter's room - it looked like a tornado had blown through it. Clothes concealed the white carpet, her dresser was cluttered with makeup, body sprays, lotions, jewelry and framed photos of Hanna and her friends. Most of which were of Hanna and Emily. The two of them at at the mall, with their arms around each other's shoulders. They were posed in front of the fountain. Hanna bore a pouty expression whereas Emily's smile was a little mischievous. In another picture, the two of them were kissing a mannequin that was dolled up in ski gear on its cheeks. Another one showed the girls dressed for Halloween the previous year, dressed as Wilma and Betty from _The Flintstones._ Their faces were pressed close together and both of them were grinning from ear-to-ear, as happy as two best friends could be. Hanna's dark pink walls were covered with posters from bands like from N'Sync to Three Days Grace. "And didn't I tell you to clean your room?"

Hanna rolled her eyes and took her sweatshirt. Shrugging into it, she spun around to face her mirror. "I will tomorrow," she replied, combing her fingers through her hair. Hanna turned back around. "How do I look?"

Ashley paused. "You look cute, Hanna." Ashley strolled over to a T-shirt and a pair of jeans tossed sloppily on her daughter's bed. "But you're just going to a sleepover. You don't have to impress anyone there. Did you wear these to school today?"

_You couldn't be more wrong. I have a certain swimmer to impress._ "Yeah, cute outfit, huh?" Hanna asked, turning to her mirror to fluff her hair.

"Yes, but didn't I tell you to you put your dirty clothes in your hamper? Your clothes are expensive, Hanna. They don't belong on your bed." Ashley picked up the clothes, kicking a shirt out of her way. "Or the floor," she added.

Hanna's eyes widened. "I'll clean up tomorrow, I promise!" Hanna hurriedly snatched the clothes out her bewildered mother's hands. "I'm just excited for my sleepover."

Ashley raised an eyebrow. "I think you've had too much espresso, Han. Are you okay?"

Hanna shrugged. "I'm fine."

Ashley sighed. "All right. You know, I shouldn't be letting you go to this sleepover at all. Especially after all the trouble you've been getting into lately. I already let you spend the night with Emily last night."

Hanna smiled. "And I'm grateful you're letting me go. I'm not going to get into any trouble, I promise."_ I just hope the school doesn't call about my absence from chemistry._

"Good, because you know what will happen if you screw up again."

Hanna groaned. "Yes, I know. _Military_ school." Hanna's nose wrinkled. "Not happening. Army attire does _not_ suit me. You can't get manicures in the army, right?"

Ashley looked blankly at her daughter. "No. Now, hurry up. You're parked behind me and I need to leave in ten minutes. I'll be downstairs."

Hanna waited until her mom was downstairs before pulling the piece of paper from the jeans she'd worn to school. Even though the part of the poster Hanna had torn off only had the number on it, she wasn't about to let her mother find it. She didn't know if her mother would have called the number or not, but she wasn't about to take any chances. Hanna didn't even know how her mother felt about gay people. Walking to her dresser, Hanna put the paper in inside her jewelry box. She was about to shut it when a array of bright colors caught her eye. Hanna picked up the rainbow-beaded bracelet and held it between her fingers. She once thought it'd been a gift from Emily, but now knew better. It was from Alison. Hanna shut her eyes.

_"I can't believe Ali made me go to Starbucks and Forever 21 for her," Hanna mumbled, pulling up to Emily's driveway. Hanna pulled out her phone and reread her text from Ali._

**_Hey, Han! Do me a favor? Go to Forever 21 and get me a pair of boyfriend jeans and then to Starbucks, okay? I want a vanilla non-fat latte. ;) I need to keep my beautiful figure. Oh, and meet me at Em's, okay?At 4:15. - Ali_**

_Hanna glanced at the time. It was 4:11. Hanna drummed her fingers against the dashboard of her car. "Why he hell does Ali want me to meet her at Em's with this stuff?" Hanna asked herself. "Such a weird request." At 4:14, Hanna gathered Ali's things, got out her car and walked into Emily's house. "Em?" she called. No answer. "Ali?" Still no answer. Hanna stomped up the steps to Emily's room._

_"W-why?" a shrill voice floated out from Emily's room._

_Hanna halted in the hallway. That voice belonged to Emily. Hanna stared a picture of Emily and her parents, debating on what to do. "Guys?"_

_Silence._

_Sighing, Hanna cautiously treaded down the short hall and to Emily's room. Her blue eyes widened at the scene before her. Ali and Emily were sitting on Emily's bed. Kissing. Her jaw dropped._

_"What the fuck?" Hanna cried out, finally finding her voice._

_Ali pushed Emily roughly away. "Emily, what the hell?" Ali sounded pissed._

_"I-" Emily trembled on her bed._

_Hanna blinked hard. What the hell did she just see?_

_Ali shot off the bed. "Why did you kiss me?"_

_"You kissed me first!"_

_Hanna could only stare. Her hand tightened around Ali's drink from Starbucks._

_"In your dreams, Emily." Ali turned to Hanna. "Go wait outside. I'll be down in a minute."_

_Hanna opened and closed her mouth, looking back and forth between Emily and Ali. Emily looked like she was close to tears. Her blue eyes lingered on Emily for a second longer. Hanna felt a little...jealous? "Um..." she said quietly._

_"Hanna." Ali's tone was sharp, demanding. "Now."_

_Hanna turned and sprinted down the stairs, almost tripping over a pair of shoes in Emily's hallway. Hanna stumbled out into the bright sunlight. "Shit," she gasped, breathing hard. Hanna leaned against her car, eyes shut tight. "What the hell was that?" Hanna whispered to herself. "Why were they kissing? Have they done that before?" Hanna crossed her ankles, listening to the Winchester twins playing basketball two houses down from Emily's._

_"Ahem."_

_Hanna's eyes shot open and she dropped Ali's Starbucks. It smashed against the sidewalk, coloring the white cement in gooey, light brown liquid. Ali stood in front of her with a raised eyebrow._

_"Y-you scared me," Hanna spluttered. "Jesus, Ali."_

_Ali kicked the empty coffee cup. "You owe me a new drink." Ali's eyes lit up at the sight of the Forever 21 bag. "Are my jeans in that bag, Han?"_

_Hanna shook her head, mindlessly handing Ali her bag. "What the hell was that about?"_

_"Was what about?" Ali asked, peering into her bag. "Sweet! Nice jeans!"_

_"Ali!" Hanna snapped, surprising the both of them with her tone. "What happened with Emily?"_

_Ali twirled the bag around on her wrist. "Oh, that." Ali shrugged, stepping away from the spilt drink. "She kissed me."_

_"Why?" Hanna put her hands on her hips. "I think you were enjoying it."_

_Ali snorted. "Uh, no. Why are you so mad?" Ali poked Hanna's stomach with a slender finger, smirking. "Is Hannakins jealous? Do you like Emily?"_

_"Of course not!"_

_Ali snickered. "Yeah? Then why are you practically foaming at the mouth? Just because you look like a dog, that doesn't mean you should act like one." Ali pulled put a rainbow-beaded bracelet from her purse and forced it onto Hanna's left wrist. "Oh, and this is for you. From Em. She wants you to know that she supports you."_

_Hanna swallowed the lump forming in her throat. "Support me for what?" she asked, too confused to snap at Ali for the dog comment._

_"For being gay," Ali said, matter-of-factly. She said it like she was stating a fact, like the grass being green._

_"I'm not gay!" Hanna shrieked._

_Ali rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say. You still owe me a Starbucks." Ali reached out and pinched Hanna's cheek. "Hanna, sweetie, do you remember what I told you? Guys don't like fat girls. And neither does Emily." Ali tossed her blond hair over a shoulder and sauntered down the sidewalk. "Bye."_

Hanna jolted out of her memory when a car horn blared. After Hanna had walked in on Emily kissing Ali, she'd avoided her for an entire week. She didn't talk to her in school and at lunch, she sat as far away from her at their table as she could. Hanna had always been jealous of Ali. Maybe, just maybe, she _had_ been jealous that Emily had kissed Ali and not her. Maybe Ali had realized it long ago, and had just been waiting for the perfect time to screw with them. Hanna hesitated and dropped the bracelet back into her jewelry box. The car horn blared again. "OKAY," she yelled, grabbing her oversized Gucci tote and tearing down the stairs. Hanna snatched her keys off the kitchen counter and hurried out the door, waving to her mom and sliding into her car. When Hanna got to Spencer's, she parked crookedly next to Aria's car and practically trampled Spencer's mother's flowers in her rush to get inside. "I'M HERE," Hanna announced from the foyer, kicking off her shoes. The smell of brownies, sandwiches and Kool-Aid wafted up her nose. "Where are you guys?"

"We're in the living room!"

Hanna's heart lifted. _Emily._ Hanna sauntered into the living room, eyes widening at the sight. "Wow, guys." A light thud was heard as Hanna tossed her bag on an armchair. "Way to keep the place clean." Blankets and pillows were strewn about on the floor, a large bowl of popcorn sat next to Emily on the couch. There was a pile of balled-up pieces of paper next to Aria, who was drawing intently from her spot on the floor. Spencer was nowhere to be seen, but she could heard noises coming from the backyard. Hanna plopped next to Emily. "What's going on?"

"Aria's drawing and Spencer's practicing field hockey," Emily explained._ God, Hanna. You're always so beautiful._ "I missed you," Emily confessed quietly, poking Hanna's shoulder.

Hanna grinned widely. "It's only been a few hours," she teased in a light tone. "I missed you, too." Before she could stop herself, Hanna planted a kiss on Emily's temple.

Emily froze, then burst into nervous giggles. "I guess we should spend more time apart, huh?" she joked. Emily trailed a finger down Hanna's arm. "Nice sweatshirt." Emily traced the black rhinestone letters that read **LOVE PINK** on the back of Hanna's sweatshirt.

Hanna rolled her tongue around in her mouth. "Oh, um, thanks. I got it from _Pink._"

"Of course the Barbie did."

Hanna smirked. "Shut up,_ Jen._"

"Make me."

"I'll take away your dream car!"

"Yeah? I'll take away your dream boat."

Aria glanced at her two friends from the top of her sketchpad. "Why don't you two just get married already? Sexual tension much?" she asked cooly, eyes dropping back down to her sketchpad.

Before either could reply, the back door banged open and in walked a tired-looking Spencer. "You guys, I was awesome!" Spencer paused. "Hey, Hanna," she said, sitting back down on the floor and taking off her shoes.

"Hey," Hanna responded, a little stiffly. "So, we're all here. What should we do?"

"Play a game?" Spencer suggested, tilting her head back to look at Hanna and Emily.

"A movie?" Emily asked, subconsciously resting her head on Hanna's shoulder.

Hanna giggled. "Tired, Sleeping Beauty?"

Emily laughed. "Yes. I'm exhausted. Swimming was so tiring today."

Hanna ran her fingers through Emily's hair in a caring manner. _Just like a friend would do, _she tried convincing herself. "Maybe I should call you Ariel. Did you swim with Flounder and Sebastian?"_ How do you keep your hair so soft, Em?_

Aria smiled, shaking her head. "Here we go..."

Emily tapped her fingers against Hanna's knee. "Of course. But Ursula was ticked because I was almost late."

Hanna twirled a lock of Emily's hair around a finger. "And whose fault is that? Bad, Ariel. Go to your clam."_ Ticked. Em, you're so cute_.

Spencer rolled her eyes. _Stop it, you two._

Emily smirked. "I'd rather be Sleeping Beauty." _Are we really flirting?_

Hanna grinned. "Then I shall call you Sleeping Beauty."

Emily breathed in slowly. "If I fall asleep, I'll need a-"

"-So," Spencer said loudly, standing up. "A movie? Great, which one?"

Hanna's eyes narrowed. _Thanks for interrupting our conversation, Spencer._ "A comedy?"

"Horror!" Emily exclaimed, lifting her head off of Hanna's shoulder. "Let's watch _I Know What You Did Last Summer_." Emily's eyes twinkled. "Unless my friends are a bunch of sissies."

"Hey!" Hanna pushed Emily playfully. "I'm not a sissy! Let's watch it."

"I'm in," said Aria, finally sliding her sketchpad underneath the couch. "Spence?"

Spencer shrugged. "Fine with me." Spencer got up and strolled her to the cabinet where her family kept their collection of DVDs. Opening the cabinet, she bent down to a middle shelf.

"...You alphabetized your DVDs didn't you, Spencer?" Emily asked, selecting some snacks from the snack table Spencer had set out.

"...No," Spencer mumbled, pulling out the DVD and popping it into the DVD player.

"You alphabetize_ everything_, Spencer." Hanna scooted down the couch so Emily could sit back down.

Spencer whirled around. "Shut up, Hanna!" she snapped. Spencer plopped down next to Aria and grabbed the remote, hitting play. "I do not. Mind your own business, okay?"

Hanna scoffed. "_Sorry,_" she mumbled, not sounding sorry at all.

Spencer clapped her hands at the lights went out. "Whatever. Let's just watch the movie."

* * *

><p>Half an hour into the movie, Hanna had her arm around Emily's and kept burying her head into her hair And every time she did, she could smell Emily's coconut-scented shampoo. It made her dizzy.<p>

"NO, DON'T GO IN THERE!" Spencer screamed,, throwing a handful of popcorn at the TV.

"HE'S HIDING BEHIND THE DOOR," Aria added, ducking behind a pillow.

Hanna threw her hands up as the girl on the screen was grabbed from behind and viciously slaughtered. "...And she's gone. That's another one."

"Idiot." As Emily reached for her drink on the table besides Spencer's couch, a searing pain jolted from her shoulder and down her arm. Emily winced in pain, pulling her arm back. "Ow!"

"What?" Hanna asked, eyes immediately snapping from the TV to Emily.

Even with only the flicker of the TV screen for light, Emily could see that her friend was concerned. Her heart fluttered. "Oh, um, my shoulders are killing me. Practice was brutal today. Anyone want to give me a massage?"

"I'll do it," Hanna piped up, a little _too_ quickly. She wasn't about to let someone else give Emily a massage. _Especially_ Spencer. Hanna turned sideways and motioned for Emily to the same. "Just relax, Em," Hanna said, rubbing her hands together to warm them up.

Spencer smirked. "You probably won't be able to help her much. You'd be afraid of breaking a nail."

Hanna's hands froze an inch from Emily's shoulders. "Well, perhaps you should call _Wren_ and have him come over and give Em a massage. I hear he likes giving _teenage girls_ massages."

Spencer stiffened. "Don't talk about him. You know how bad I feel about that."

"Obviously not bad enough, you still did it," Hanna muttered under her breath.

"Hanna, stop," Emily said quietly before Spencer could say anything else. "Please?"

Spencer crossed her arms and focused on the movie, not saying anything.

"You guys shouldn't fight. We need to stick together now more than ever." Aria flicked a stray piece of popcorn off her knee. "Let's just enjoy the movie." The girls settled back into an awkward silence.

After a few moments, Hanna cleared her throat. "Um, still want a massage, Em?"

"Yes."

Hanna took a deep breath. "Um, I have to..." Hanna slowly slid her hands under the back of Emily's shirt, shivering slightly. "F-for it to work better." Hanna gently massaged her hands into Emily's shoulders. "Is-is this okay?" _Oh my God._

Emily's sense of concentration snapped the moment she felt Hanna's hands on her back. "Mhm," she sighed, eyes fluttering shut. _Wow, that feels incredible. Hanna, your hands are so soft._

Hanna applied more pressure. Emily's skin felt warm and smooth under her fingers. "Does it hurt?" she asked, moving her thumbs in circles on Emily's shoulders. She was so tempted to lean forward and kiss the back of Emily's neck.

"N-no," Emily swallowed hard as Hanna's hands pressed into her back. Emily had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep down any noises. How embarrassing would _that_ be? Emily squeezed her nails into her palms as Hanna ran her fingers down Emily's back, and slowly pressed her palms into her skin as she worked her way back up to her shoulders. The only sounds Emily could hear were the pounding of her heart against her chest and the blood rushing in her ears._ I'm going to die. Hanna's going to give me a heart attack._

Spencer shifted on the floor, leaning back against the couch. She could just make out Hanna and Emily's reflections from the China cabinet next to the TV set. _Hmm. There's definitely something going on with you two. I'm sure of it._ Spencer poked Aria's thigh with her foot. "Come help me look for a CD I burned. We can listen to music later."

Aria didn't look away from the movie. "Can't it wait?"

"Aria, now. Please?"

Aria sighed heavily and climbed to her feet, pausing the movie with the remote. Jennifer Love Hewitt's face froze in mid-scream. "Fine," she mumbled, following Spencer up the carpeted stairs and leaving Hanna and Emily alone.

Emily's eyes fluttered open and she gazed around the quiet living room. "Um, where'd Spencer and Aria go?" _I can't focus on anything when your hands are on me._

"They left to get a CD." Hanna rubbed Emily's shoulders hard, trying to work out a knot. "Wow, Em. You are really tense."

"Can you blame me?" Emily asked, closing her eyes. When Hanna pressed her thumbs against the skin just under Emily's shoulders and rotated them in a circular motion, a low groan left Emily's lips, despite her effort to keep it down.

Hanna stopped almost instantly. "Did you just...?"

Emily mentally kicked herself. "No!"

"You did!"

"I did not!"

Hanna giggled and started to massage Emily's shoulders again. "I guess it feels pretty damn good, hm?"

Emily sighed under her breath._ You have no idea._ "Massages always feel good," Emily responded carefully. _I melt every time you touch me, Hanna._ "Hanna, stop," she said suddenly, turning around so they were face-to-face. "We need to talk."

"About what?" Hanna asked. Hanna _hated_ whenever someone said that. It always made her feel paranoid.

Emily inhaled deeply. She could do this. "About our conversation in the janitor's closet earlier."

* * *

><p>"So you think there is something between them?" Aria asked, leaning up against Spencer's closed bedroom door. Nothing was out of place and everything was spotless. Even the posters Spencer kept on her wall were perfectly taped down.<p>

"It's obvious, isn't it?" Spencer replied from her spot on her bed. Spencer tossed her CD back and forth between her hands. "Emily and Hanna are so in love with each other."

Aria shifted. "I don't know, Spence. I mean, they _did_ seem flirty earlier, but they're just best friends."

Spencer arched an eyebrow. "Aria. Hanna looked like she was ten seconds away from throwing Emily down on my floor and having her way with her then and there. And Em? Well, Em looked like she wouldn't mind." Spencer let the CD fall into her lap. "I don't like it, to be honest with you."

Aria sighed. "Can I ask you a question? And don't say, 'you just did.' I hate that."

"What is it?"

"Promise you won't get upset?"

"Aria, what is it?"

Aria pressed her palms flat against Spencer's door. "Are you gay?"

"Am I _gay_?" Spencer repeated, dumbfounded. "No! What makes you think that?"

Aria shrugged helplessly. "Um, well, no offense, but...you just put off that 'vibe' sometimes," Aria explained, using air quotes around the word _vibe_. "And you seem... jealous of Hanna and Emily. Are you jealous because they may like each other?"

Spencer was quiet for a full minute before she spoke. "I_ am_ jealous," Spencer confessed quietly. "But not because I'm gay. I'm not. You know that. I'm with-"

"I know," Aria quickly interrupted. "Continue."

"I'm jealous of how close they are. Look at the friendship they have. It's spend all of their time together. We hardly ever see them now as it is. If they start dating, we'll _never_ see them. And what about A? A would have a field day if they got together. A would do everything in their power to bring their relationship crashing down. Plus, what happens if they get into a fight and breakup? Bye-bye us. I just really, really can't approve of the idea. We're supposed to be working together to triumph over A. Not date each other. "

Aria pushed herself up off the door. "We're supposed to be there for each other, Spence. If they do start dating, you won't approve?"

"No," Spencer said softly, climbing off her bed. "I just think it's a bad idea."

Aria opened Spencer's door. "Come on. We have to get back down there before they swallow each other's tongues."

* * *

><p>Hanna dropped her eyes to her jeans."Oh." <em>Oh.<em> She picked at a hole in her jeans, sticking her finger in it and making it larger. "What about it?"

Emily slowly took Hanna's hands in her own. "You said that it'd be more than possible that we'd date, remember?"

Hanna nodded once, trying to ignore the fact that Emily's hands fit perfectly into hers. She still didn't look up. _I'm so going to be rejected for Spencer. Perfect._ "Yeah..."

Emily swallowed. "You were going to say something else. You said, 'I think I...' But then Spencer and Aria opened the door, and you never finished what you were going to say." Emily squeezed Hanna's hands. "Hanna, what were you going to say?"

Hanna raised her head, pulling her hands away and tucking them under her arms. "Nothing," she mumbled._ If I don't say anything, I won't be rejected._

"Hanna," Emily sighed.

"Emily, just drop it. Please?"

Emily opened her mouth to respond, but a loud ringing sound coming from Hanna's pocket abruptly cut off whatever she was going to say. "If that's A..."

Hanna pulled out her phone. ONE NEW TEXT MESSAGE, she read silently to herself. She clicked read. "Huh?" she said out loud, squinting at her text. It was a number she didn't recognize. A's texts were always from a blocked number. "This is weird.."

_Hey, Hanna. It's Noel Kahn. I got your number from Aria._

Hanna paused. Aria. She'd kill her. "It's from Noel Kahn," Hanna informed Emily, flickering her eyes back to her phone's screen.

_Um, so, you know how you said you and Emily weren't dating? Yeah, uh, do you think you'd want to do something sometime? I know a great Italian restaurant. If you like Italian. Just let me know. ~~__NoelisBeastly~~_

Hanna snorted at Noel's signature. _Really?_ "He asked me out," Hanna said quietly, showing Emily the text.

Emily furrowed her brows together. "Are you going to go?" _Please say no. Please._

Hanna shrugged. "I don't know. I'll have to think about it." _Does it make you upset?_ "What would you think if I did?"

"If you did what?" a voice asked. Hanna twisted around. Spencer and Aria were standing at the bottom of the staircase. Spencer had a CD tightly clenched in her hand.

"Oh," Hanna said. "Um, Noel asked me out just now. He texted me. Aria, I'm going to kill you."

Aria ducked her head and sat back down. "Sorry," she laughed. "So what did he say?"

Hanna read Noel's text out loud. "His signature is ridiculous," she said once she'd finished.

Spencer set the CD case next to Emily's glass on the coffee table, plopping next to Aria. "I think you should go. Do you, Em?"

Emily merely shrugged. "Um, sure. If she wants."

Hanna fiddled with her cardigan strings. "I don't know." _Only if it'd make Emily jealous._ "I'll decide later."

Aria grabbed the remote and hit play. "I think you'd rather date someone else," she muttered under her breath. "We need to finish this movie."

An hour later, the girls had finished the movie and changed into their pajamas. Spencer had pulled out the hide-a-bed from the couch and turned into a comfortable-looking spot for sleep, complete with sheets, pillows and blankets. "Two of us get the floor," Spencer said, gesturing to the makeshift bed on the floor, "and two of us get the couch. Who wants what?"

"I want the couch bed," Hanna said, smoothing out wrinkles from her pajama bottoms and slipping under the sheets.

"Me too," Emily said quickly after.

Aria hid her smirk and settled down under the blankets on the floor. "We didn't listen to music," she pointed out.

"Oh well," Spencer grumbled, shooting Hanna and Emily a look that neither of them noticed. Spencer got herself situated on the floor and turned the TV to the History Channel. "Ooh, a documentary about the Civil War. Nice!"

Hanna, Emily, and Aria shared a glance, giggling.

"Spencer, can't we watch something else?" Hanna asked, rolling on her back. Of course Spencer would want to watch a documentary about a war that happened _forever ago._

Spencer shook her head. "It's interesting, guys."

Hanna scoffed but didn't say anything else. The girls fell into a comfortable silence as the narrator droned on about facts about the Civil War that only Spencer knew about. One by one, they each dropped like flies.

_"George Washington, one of the country's greatest leaders and our nation's first president..."_

Hanna groggily opened her eyes. In the background, there was a special about George Washington on the TV. The words were barely making any sense to Hanna in her fogged state of mind. Hanna blinked rapidly, trying to get her eyes to adjust to the dark room. "Ugh," she groaned. As she moved her hand, her fingers got tangled in something soft and...silky. Frowning, she felt the object again. It felt like...hair. Hanna's brain snapped on and she realized that her fingers were entangled in _Emily's_ hair. Hanna gasped quietly. She was lying practically on top of Emily. Her arm was draped around her waist, and her fingers were tangled in her hair. Her left leg was between Emily's, and her head rested on Emily's chest. Hanna lifted her head up fast, breathing in very slowly. "Shit," she whispered. She and Emily were so close. Hanna hesitated and carefully laid her head back down against Emily's chest, shutting her eyes. She could hear Emily's heart beating through the fabric of her shirt. Emily's breathing was slow and steady as she slept. Hanna untangled her fingers from Emily's hair. Just as she was about to move away from Emily, the swimmer stirred beneath her and opened her eyes.

"Hanna?" Emily asked, voice thick with sleep.

Hanna swallowed. "I-I'm sorry," she whispered. "I didn't mean-I didn't think we'd-"

"It's okay, Hanna," Emily interrupted sleepily. "It's...it's nice."

"Really?"

"Really," Emily responded, sounding a bit more awake. "Are you comfortable?"

"Very much so," Hanna replied softly.

Emily felt around in the dark and interlaced her fingers with Hanna's. "Hanna, don't do it."

"Don't do what?" Hanna replied, feeling sleep taking over again. She closed her eyes and gently squeezed Emily's hand.

"Don't go out with Noel," Emily whispered in a soft tone. "Please?"

"Why not?" Hanna could tell that Emily was getting sleepy.

"I don't want you to," Emily murmured, tracing small circles on Hanna's palm with her thumb.

Hanna shivered. Did Emily realize what she was doing? Or saying? "Okay," Hanna said. "I won't." Hanna pulled Emily a tiny bit closer to her. "Em?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you, you know that, right?"

Emily smiled. "I love you, too, Hanna. Best friends forever, right?" _But I love you as more than a friend._

Hanna managed a small laugh. "Of course. Goodnight, Emmykins."

"Goodnight, Hanna Banana." And then Hanna drifted off to sleep once more.

* * *

><p>The next morning, after the girls had cleaned up the living room and changed out of their pajamas, Spencer cooked everyone a breakfast of pancakes, buttered toast, and sausage links.<p>

"I'm so hungry," Emily said, stuffing a piece of sausage into her mouth.

Hanna snickered. "Slow down there, kid. You might choke. And then one of us will have to give you the heimlich maneuver."

"Do you even know _how_ the heimlich maneuver is performed, Han?" Spencer asked, spreading grape jelly evenly on her toast.

"Of course," Hanna answered with a roll of her eyes. "I'm not stupid."

Hanna poked Emily in the shin with her foot. "But I _just_ got my nails done last week, so.."

Emily took a sip of her orange juice and her set her glass down. "Oh, I wouldn't want the Barbie to ruin her perfect nails saving my life."

Aria swirled a piece of her pancake around in a large glob of syrup. "Nah, Hanna would rather give you mouth-to-mouth, Em. When you're not choking."

Emily almost did choke on her toast. "Aria!" Emily snapped, turning a little red.

"I would not," Hanna mumbled, lowering her gaze to her plate. _Except I would._

Spencer aimed a kick at Aria's leg. "Not funny."

"Ow!" Aria yelped, grabbing her leg under the table. "Spencer!"

"Well, that wasn't funny!"

Hanna's phone let out a loud bleep, causing everyone to jump. "Again?" Hanna groaned, picking it up from her lap. "What if it's Noel?"

"Just check, Han." Emily watched Hanna carefully as she chewed her food, hoping it wasn't Noel. Or worse, A.

Hanna sighed and opened her text.

_Oink, oink, Hanna! Do you really need to eat more food? I almost feel sorry for you, so here's a present. Out of pity. Enjoy!_

Hanna frowned at the attachment. Should she click it?

"Hanna? Who is it?"

"Is it A?"

"Noel?"

Hanna didn't answer. Instead, she clicked open. The little timer spun around on her screen as the picture loaded. It came into view slowly. First, the top of Emily's head appeared, then her smiling face, followed by the rest. Spencer stood next to her, a wide grin on her face. Spencer had both of Emily's hands in hers. There was a bunch of bright lights between them and in the background, Hanna could just make out the sign for the Rosewood Skating Rink. It looked like...a _date._ Hanna's hand shook slightly as she read the caption.

_Looks like they're having fun! Quite the match made in heaven. And where's Hanna? Nowhere to be seen. All alone. Just like you always will be. Should we throw the happy couple a party? You love parties! - A_

Hanna's jaw dropped and she shoved back her chair so forcibly that it toppled over, the loud crash ringing through the Hastings' kitchen.

"Hanna, what is it?" Emily asked, alarmed.

Hanna ignored her and stormed to the living room, snatching up her bag and plucking her keys off the coffee table. "I have to go."

"What?" Spencer blinked. "Why? Hanna, what's going on? What was your text about?"

"Hanna, tell us," Aria said in a quiet voice. "You're starting to scare us."

Hanna blinked back her tears. Of course. She'd been so damn stupid. Hanna looked back and forth between Emily and Spencer. Emily had played with her heart, just like Ali had done to Emily. _It seems like Emily learned a lot from Ali_. "I'm leaving.

Emily scrambled off her chair and lightly took hold of Hanna's wrist, eyes burning with concern. _"What_, Hanna?"

Hanna ripped her arm away. "Don't talk to me. Any of you," Hanna spat.

Emily flinched like Hanna had slapped her. "Hanna..."

"No. I mean it. Have fun, Fields."

And then Hanna turned and ran out of the house, unlocking her car and climbing into it. Her fingers flew over the numbers on her keypad and she put her phone to her ear. It rang once, twice, three times before a voice on the other end picked up.

"Hello?"

"Noel? It's Hanna."

"Oh, hey, Hanna." Noel didn't sound surprised. "What's up?"

"Nothing, but I thought about your question. I'll do it."

"Do what?" Noel asked, pretending to be confused. Bastard was probably smirking.

"I'll go out with you."

* * *

><p>Woohoo! I apologize if I left any words that were supposed to be italicized, un-italicized. Like I said, it's really late here! So, what did you guys think? Loved it? Hated it? I know it seems like it's taking forever for Hanna and Emily to get together, but they will soon. I promise. ;)<p>

OH! Andd, some of you may have noticed that my co-owner of this account, Marissa, has posted a story. _Like We Never Had a Chance. _It's a Toby/Aria fic, or "Taria". Silly girl didn't bold her author's note in the beginning. )

Anyway, you guys should check it out. Personally, I love the idea of Toby and Aria. And she writes well. That being said, please check out her story if you'd like! Thanks! More to come soon! And keep the reviews coming on both stories!

~S


	7. Leave Unsaid Unspoken

Heyyy, guys!

First off, I'm going to thank all of you again for sticking with this story. I really appreciate it and all of you are so awesome. You guys leave fantastic reviews and great feedback, so thank you! I won't ramble this time, onto the chapter! =)

* * *

><p>Monday morning, Emily shuffled into Rosewood High School, still half- asleep. She hadn't gotten an ounce of sleep all weekend. Emily could count on one hand the number of times Hanna had been mad at her. Three. The first time, Hanna had gotten mad at Emily was when she'd accidentally smashed Hanna's <em>favorite<em> bottle of perfume. Hanna had only stayed mad at Emily for about fifteen minutes before she'd pelted her with pillows. The second time, Emily had unintentionally left Hanna stranded at the mall one Saturday afternoon. Ashley had dropped Hanna off on her way to work, and Emily had promised to pick Hanna up after her swim practice ended. The team had been released earlier than expected, and Emily had gone home to wait until it was time to pick Hanna up. But she'd fallen asleep. When she'd finally awakened, it was after six and it was raining cats and dogs. Hanna had called Emily ten times and left a voice mail each time, the messages becoming more frantic than the last. By the time Emily had listened to the last voice mail, Hanna was furious and ended up walking home during the storm. The girls didn't speak to each other until midnight that night, when Hanna had called to apologize. They had shared a laugh. The third and final time, Hanna had begged and pleaded with Emily to attend a Justin Bieber concert with her that night. Emily strongly disliked the Canadian singer, but Hanna's smiling face and shining, bright blue eyes were too hard to resist. So, reluctantly, Emily had agreed. Hanna had given Emily the tickets for fear of losing them. That night, as they were waiting in line, Emily realized she'd left the tickets at home. Needless to say, the usher taking the tickets refused to let them in and they were unable to purchase another set of tickets. Not even a scalper had two spare tickets. The pair was forced to go home. During the whole two-hour drive, Hanna didn't say a word to Emily. And then she refused to talk to her the next day until the middle of the afternoon when Emily had shown up at Hanna's house with tickets _and_ backstage passes to Justin Bieber's next concert. It had cost Emily her entire savings, but it'd been worth it to see Hanna's smile. But even though Emily had pissed Hanna off on three separate occasions, not once did they go a whole weekend without speaking to each other. Hanna had ignored every text, call and e-mail from the swimmer. And that worried Emily greatly.

"Hey, Em." Spencer greeted quietly as Emily walked up to her. Emily looked, well, _awful._ Deep bags unsettled normally beautiful, shining eyes. Her hair wasn't normally smooth and straight, but slightly tangled and Emily had throw on a hat in attempt to cover up her bad hair day. "Rough night?" she asked sympathetically, pushing her back against her locker to avoid being mowed down by a group of seniors chasing a poor freshman down the hall. _Poor kid._

"Rough night?" Emily groaned. "Try horrid weekend. Did Hanna talk to you at all?" Emily asked hopefully.

Spencer sighed. "No. She didn't answer Aria, either. What happened when you went to her house yesterday?"

Emily fidgeted with a bracelet. "Her mom answered the door and told me Hanna didn't want to see anyone. We were supposed to go play mini-golf, remember? I'm so worried about her."

"Hey, it's Hanna. She gets moody sometimes, remember? You're her best friend. She can only shut you out for so long. Something must be really bothering her. Did she mention anything about being upset?"

But Emily wasn't listening. Her eyes had zeroed in on a couple down the hall. The guy's hands were around the girl's waist and the girl was leaning back against the lockers, her own arms around his shoulder. The dark-haired guy moved forward and whispered something in her ear. She giggled.

Emily's jaw dropped. Hanna and_ Noel_.

"Emily?" Spencer turned and followed Emily's stare. "Oh," she whispered. _Better Noel than Emily_. Spencer snapped out of her thoughts when Emily stormed past her and headed towards the pair. "Emily? Emily, wait!" Spencer dashed after Emily, weaving through the sea of students. "Excuse me, pardon me, move please," Spencer flabbergasted to confused kids as she pushed her way through the hall. Spencer caught up with Emily just as she reached Hanna and Noel.

"Hanna." Emily folded her arms across her chest. "You didn't call me back. Are you okay? We've been worried sick." Emily glanced at Noel briefly before snapping her gaze back on Hanna.

Hanna, still with her arms around Noel's neck, shrugged. "Yup, I'm fine. Better than fine, actually." _Lie number one for the day._

Emily blinked. "That's all I get for an explanation?"

"That's all you_ deserve_." Hanna's eyes narrowed at Spencer. _This is all your fault._

Spencer flinched. _Harsh_. "Em, come on." Spencer's fingers curled around Emily's wrist.

Emily shook Spencer off. "Excuse me? Hanna, you fucking ignore me all weekend and now, you won't even tell me what's going on?"

Noel grinned, slightly amused.. "Whoa, Emily Fields knows how to swear? That's kind of...hot."

"Shut your damn mouth," Emily spat at Noel, glaring heatedly at Hanna. A crowd slowly started to form around the four Rosewood students.

"And apparently she's feisty," Noel added under his breath.

Hanna removed her arms from Noel's neck and turned to Emily. "Don't talk to my _boyfriend_ like that, Emily. Fine. You want to know what I was doing?"

Emily bit down on the inside of her cheek._ Boyfriend. Boyfriend. Boyfriend._

"Wait," said a student. "Aren't Hanna and Emily...?"

"They broke up?"

"Hanna's with Noel now? Somebody moves fast."

Spencer whipped around. "Shut up, all of you. Emily and Hanna were never together in the first place. And you know what else? There's nothing to see here, so everyone move along now." No one moved. "I said, move along," Spencer scowled sharply at the crowd. Her eyes were dark and a little frightening, like she was daring the next person to say something else about her friends. Reluctantly, the crowd departed with low mumbles. Spencer smirked. That was better. Emily, let's go."

"Yes, Emily, go with Spencer," Hanna said bitterly. Blue orbs burned into rich-brown ones.

Emily didn't take her eyes off of Hanna. _God, she's gorgeous_. "Enlighten me, what did you do?"

Hanna smirked. "We went out on a few dates. We went to an Italian restaurant, we went to see a movie, and he took me mini-golfing. It was fun." _It was torture._

The hairs on Emily's arms stood on end. Boyfriend. Hanna and Noel. Boyfriend. Girlfriend. "Wait," Emily pressed her hand to her forehead. "You went and played mini-golf? On Sunday?"

Hanna nodded. "Yeah."

Emily's mouth suddenly went cottony-dry. "But...but that's _our_ thing. Hanna, we always play mini-golf every other Sunday."

Hanna shrugged a shoulder. "It _was_ our thing, Emily."

Emily stepped closer to Hanna tentatively. "Hanna. Please. Please tell me what it was that I did wrong."

Hanna knew she wasn't being fair. But she was crushed. Devastated. "You-" Hanna was cut short when a pair of rough, chapped lips crashed against hers. Noel's arms slid around her waist and he pushed her gently against the lockers.

Spencer rose an eyebrow. _Awkward_.

Emily stared. A painful sensation shot up her chest. Her stomach lurched in pain. Her chest suddenly felt like a thousand knives were being pushed into it, and_ she couldn't fucking breathe_. Emily ran her tongue over her lips._ Did you just hear my heart break? It was earth-shattering._

Hanna gasped and she gently but firmly pushed him away "N-Noel..." Subconsciously, Hanna's eyes shifted over to Emily._ Don't think I enjoyed that for a second._

"Sorry," Noel said quietly, brushing hair out of Hanna's eyes. "I thought it might help you feel better." Hanna mashed her lips together. Noel had only kissed her once before now and both times, he'd taken her by surprise. He tasted like cigarettes and Pepsi. _Ew_. Out of the corner of her eye, Hanna saw Emily spin around and walk back in the direction she'd come from. After a second, Spencer hurried after her. _Good_, Hanna thought sourly. _Go comfort your girlfriend. See if I care._

Noel ran his hands through his hair. "Er, that didn't go well."

"No, really?" Hanna scoffed. A brightly colored poster on the wall behind Noel caught her eye. It looked vaguely familiar. Her nose wrinkled up. Wait. "Um, today's the twelfth, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

Hanna bit her lip. "No reason."

"So are we doing anything tonight?" Noel asked slyly.

Hanna tucked a lock of hair behind her right ear. "No."

"Oh." Noel frowned. "Tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow," Hanna greed. If I still have my sanity.

* * *

><p>At five to seven p.m., Hanna pulled into the parking lot of Rosewood Community Hall, tires crunching over an abandoned slurpee cup from the 7-11 across the street. She turned off the ignition and sat there in silence. The meeting for the LBGT club started in five minutes. In five minutes, she'd walk into a stuffy, cramped room and...and <em>what?<em> Hanna had no clue what to expect. Would each person get handed a rainbow flag when they talked through the door? Or would they munch on those cookies that had the rainbow chocolate chips in them? Hanna shut her eyes and breathed in the familiar scent of her pine cone-scented air freshener that hung from her rearview mirror. She couldn't do this. Hanna's fingers coiled around her hair and she tugged gently, inhaling as slowly as she could. Just the very idea made her stomach churn. She wasn't embarrassed by what she felt for Emily. It just scared her. Hanna tilted her rearview mirror down. Wild, intense blue eyes stared back. Hanna folded her hands in her lap.

"I have blue eyes," she said to her reflection. _True._ "I have blond hair," Hanna continued, touching a strand of her curly blond hair. _True_. Hanna dug manicured nails into her knees, eyes locked on her reflection. "I love Noel Kahn as more than a friend."_ False_, her conscience immediately simpered. Hanna's stomach twisted. "I..." Her lips smacked together. She tried again. "My name is Hanna Marin. I have blond hair, blue eyes, I am obsessed with fashion..." Hanna's eyes darted to a picture of herself and Emily that she kept on her dashboard. Last winter, during a huge snow storm, Hanna had shown up at Emily's at the ass crack of dawn, dressed from head-to-toe in snow gear, holding a sled. Emily barely had time to scramble into her snowsuit and gloves before Hanna literally dragged her off to one of the steepest hills in Rosewood. By the time the girls had trudged up the top, Hanna was out of breath and Emily was acting like she just walked up a flight of stairs. _"Maybe if you worked out instead of living at the mall, you wouldn't be out of breath,"_ Emily had teased playfully, earning a snowball to the face. After an hour of sledding, the girls had sat at the bottom of the hill on the sled and talked for hours about everything, both having gotten used to the cold. Hanna had pulled her camera of her pocket, squished her face next to Emily's, and told her strike a pose. It had been one of the only times Hanna could remember being truly happy. Taking a deep breath, Hanna looked back at her reflection.

"...And I am in love with my best friend." Hanna closed her eyes. bracing herself. But... nothing happened. The world didn't explode. Hanna didn't grow a third head. Her stomach muscles relaxed. Hanna wet her lips with her tongue. Maybe she could do this. Sighing, Hanna grabbed her purse, got out of her car and headed into the building. The air smelled thickly of lemon-scented pledge and floor wax. The combination of smells sent Hanna's mind reeling back to being trapped inside the janitor's closet.

_I think it'd be more than possible that we'd date,_ Hanna had told Emily. Hanna wished more than anything that she could tell Emily how she felt. But after the way Hanna treated Emily at school, she wouldn't be surprised if Emily never spoke to her again. Hanna and Emily didn't say a word to each other during the entire day. In history, Hanna had kicked a freckled-faced kid out of his seat so she wouldn't have to sit behind Emily. At lunch, Hanna had sat with Noel, eyes never leaving the table Emily was seated at with Spencer and Aria. After school, Hanna had ditched Noel in the parking lot, gone home and pigged out on an entire carton of Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream and two bags of mini Snickers. After that, she'd locked herself in her bathroom for two hours. She'd cried into a towel. She shoved a toothbrush down her throat so many times she was sure she was going to have one hell of a sore throat within the days to come. Hanna followed the signs that directed her to room B24, where the meeting was being held. She came to a halt outside the door. "You can do this.." Hanna pushed the door open and stepped inside.

* * *

><p>"I mean, who the HELL does she think she is?" Emily paced around Aria's room in quick, frenzied circles. She'd arrived at Aria's without prior notification right after her swim practice, and the two had gone up to Aria's room right away. They had tried calling Spencer, the brunette hadn't answered. Aria sprawled out on her bed, her thick, wavy locks spilling over her pillows as she watched Emily pace.<p>

"You're going to burn a hole into my rug," she joked.

"Noel!" Emily exasperated, throwing her hands up. "She ignores me, I mean _us_, all weekend because she was with _Noel Kahn?_"

"I know," Aria said softly. "Spencer told me everything, remember? Emily, -"

"And she went played mini-golf with him yesterday! That's our thing, Aria! It always has been!" Emily interrupted, picking up a stuffed penguin and squeezing its beak.

"I know, but Emily I think-"

"She didn't say a word to me the whole day! Besides when we were in the hall. I had five people come up to me and tell me they were sorry to hear about our 'breakup," Emily ranted, using air quotes at the end of her sentence. "What does she even see in him? He obviously isn't right for her." Emily twisted the penguin's beak as she walked around Aria's room. "He isn't right for her," she repeated. "Why the hell is she even with him? Is she doing this just to -"

"EMILY!" Aria snapped, throwing a pillow at the brunette.

"What?" Emily snapped back, tossing both the pillow and the stuffed penguin back at Aria.

Aria exhaled. "I know you're upset. I don't blame you. I am as well. But are you sure you're not...jealous?"

"Jealous?" Emily reiterated. Panic swelled in the pit of her stomach. "W-why would I be jealous?"

Aria arched an eyebrow. "Please," she snorted. "You're _obviously_ in love with Hanna."

A few pregnant sections crept by. "..You're joking."

"I am most certainly not." Aria sat up, folding her arms across her chest. "Anyone can see it."

"You're insane," Emily said, the feeling in her stomach intensifying.

"Emily, I'm not stupid. You've been in love with her for a while."

"I am not-"

Aria sprang off her bed. "If you want your fairy tale to come true, you're going to need some help from the master of fairy tales."

"...What?"

Aria swept past Emily and bent down to go through a stack of CDs that were piled on the shelf next to one of her dressers. "Found it!" she cried spotting the CD she was looking for. She pulled it out and waved it in Emily's face.

Emily raised an eyebrow. "Have you lost it?"

"Have you?" Aria countered, taking the CD out and sliding it in her CD player. She studied the back of the case and punched in the correct number on her CD player and pressed pause before the song could play. "I'll alter a few of the lyrics, but sing this with me."

"No way!"

"You don't even know which song it is," Aria pointed out with a grin. "Scared?"

"Absolutely not."

"Then sing it with me. You go first. Sing with me, and I'll let the matter drop. It fits your situation."

Emily hesitated. "Promise?"

"Promise. It'll be fun!"

"...Fine," Emily sighed.

Aria grinned and pressed play. A few seconds later, a familiar Disney song drifted out from the speakers. Emily frowned, recognizing it almost instantly. "You can't be serious."

"As a heart attack," Aria chuckled, slipping out of her flats.

Emily sighed as the female voice echoed through Aria's room. _Aria, you're officially nuts._

_"If there's a prize for rotten judgement, I guess I've already won that,"_ Emily sang, plopping down onto Aria's beanbag chair.

Aria smiled. _"No woman is worth the aggravation..."_ she picked up from where Emily left off. Aria walked over and snatched a pink-feathered boa off of a mannequin.

Emily rolled her eyes. _"That's ancient history-been there, done that!"_

Aria ran over to Emily and threw the boa around her shoulders, tugging on the ends and forcing the swimmer to stand up. _"Who ya think you're kidding, she's the earth and heaven to you. Girl, you can't conceal it. I know how ya feel and who you're thinking of!"_ Aria sang, walking backwards and twirling in a circle.

Emily had to smile. _"Ohhh, no chance, no way. I won't say it, no, no,"_ she sang, shrugging out of her swimming jacket and letting it drop to the floor.

Aria snatched up a photo album and flipped through it quickly, stopping on a picture of Emily and Hanna. _"You swoon, you sigh, why deny it, uh-oh,"_ Aria crooned quickly, almost missing her cue, while shoving the photo album under Emily's nose.

Emily glanced down at the photo and her heart flipped when she saw Hanna's smiling face looking back up at her. _"It's too cliche. I won't say I'm in love,"_ Emily muttered, pushing the photo album away. She turned and crossed her arms stubbornly, walking away from Aria. Her eyes fell on an old picture of Alison. Emily tentatively touched the dark pink frame the picture resided behind. _"I thought my heart had learned its lesson. It feels so good when you start out."_ As if someone else were controlling her, Emily's hands flew to her head. "_My head is screaming get a grip girl. Unless you're dying to cry your heart out!"_ Emily chorused softly, sinking to her knees, eyes brimming with tears.

Aria was by her side in seconds. She had flipped to a whole page of pictures full of Emily and Hanna. Aria held the book directly under Emily's face with one hand, and held her head down with the other so Emily couldn't move. _"You keep on denying who you are and how you're feeling. Baby, I'm not buying, Hon, I saw ya hit the ceiling. Face it like a grow-up, When you're gonna own up, That you got, got, got it bad!"_ Aria breathed in quickly, trying to catch her her breath.

Emily shut her eyes._ "No chance, no way. I won't say it, no, no."_

Aria frowned and lifted Emily's head up, picking up Emily's wrist so Emily could see the bracelet Hanna had got her._ "Give up, give in. Check the grin, you're in love!"_

Emily shoved Aria away and stood up, grabbing her coat. _"This scene won't play, I won't say I'm in love."_ Emily headed towards the door.

Aria hurried after her and blocked her path. _"You're doin' flips, read my lips. You're in love,"_ Aria sang loudly, eyeing Emily determinedly.

Emily snorted._ "You're way off base, I won't say it."_ Emily waved her hand and started for the door again. _"Get off my case, I won't say it."_

Aria slammed the door to her room and pressed her back against it, glaring at Emily. _"Girl, don't be proud. It's okay, you're in love."_

Emily sighed. "_Ohhhhh, at least out loud. I won't say I'm in...love,"_ Emily whispered softly.

Aria quickly crossed her room and shut off the CD player before the next song could start. She turned to Emily, watching her friend carefully. "See? Was that so hard?"

"Yes," Emily spat irritably.

Aria chuckled and fell back on her bed. "You love her. Just admit it."

"I do not."

"Do so."

"Aria, stop. Hanna's my friend. I only like her as my friend."

"Liar."

Emily let out a frustrated sigh. She knew Aria wouldn't care. But maybe if she kept it to herself, her feelings for Hanna would disappear now that she was with Noel. _Yeah, right_, her mind tauned. _They'll never go away._ "I don't have feelings for her."

The gears in Aria's mind whirled, and her lips spread into a slow, sly smile. "Okay, okay. Sorry. It's a good thing you don't have feelings for Hanna. She's not exactly the best person to be crushing on." _Take the bait, Em._

Emily's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

Aria inwardly smirked. _Bingo._ "Well," she started, picking up a bedazzled pillow and running her fingers over the beads, "Hanna is ...Hanna."

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?"

Aria shrugged. Bright green nails pulled beads off her pillow. "She's not exactly the model for the perfect girlfriend. She screwed with Lucas's feelings."

"That was A's doing," Emily said, immediately jumping to Hanna's defense.

Aria sighed dramatically, hiding her smirk with her hand. "Look, Em, I know she's your best friend. She's a great friend, but I just don't think she's girlfriend material. She's a player."

"She isn't a player!" Emily gasped, twisting the sleeves of her swimming jacket in tight knots. Aria really felt this way about Hanna?

Aria bit down on her pinky to stop herself from grinning. Emily was so protective of Hanna. "I'm just telling you how I feel. Hanna's a good friend, but I'm sorry, she'd be a horrible girlfriend."

"She would not!" Emily growled, letting her jacket fall to the floor. "Aria, you've never been more wrong. Hanna would be the most amazing, perfect, alluring girlfriend ever. She's smarter than she lets on. She's sweet. Gentle." Emily's voice grew softer. "Beautiful. Funny. Protective. She's always there for me. I can always count on her. She has this smile that lights up the entire room. These deep, mystifying ocean-blue eyes that I could get lost in. Her laugh makes my heart melt. And she always smells so damn good. I swear, when she's around I can't-" Emily suddenly broke off at the amused look on Aria's face. Realization hit her like a freight train. "...And you just tricked me, didn't you?"

"I prefer cleverly swindled. Sounds more fun to say," Aria said, a smirk evident on her pink lips. "Wow, Em. That's so cute! Here's an idea. Instead of blabbing to me, why don't tell you Hanna? And for the record, none of I said before is what I actually believe."

"I can't tell her," Emily groaned. "Move over," she mumbled, pushing Aria and dropping down on her bed. The bed groaned from the extra weight. "I think she only sees me as a friend."

Aria snorted and laid back against her pillows. "Right, and Mike is really a fairy we adopted from Sugar Plum Mountain," she replied, tone heavy with sarcasm.

Emily smiled. "Well, actually, Hanna _did_ tell me that it would be more than possible that she and I would date."

Aria sat up fast. "_What?"_

Emily nodded. "When we were in the janitor's closet. She just never finished what she was going to say because we were interrupted by you and Spencer. She hasn't told me since. I tried to get her to talk about it at the sleepover, but then Noel texted her, and..." Emily trailed off. "-And now they're dating."

Aria frowned and enveloped Emily into a hug. "Did you ever think of the possibility that Hanna's only dating Noel to make you jealous?"

Emily leaned her head on Aria's shoulder. "Don't say that name around me, please."

"Sorry," Aria apologized. "But, really. No-I mean, he may just be a pawn. What do you have to lose if you tell her?"

Emily was silent for a moment. "Everything."

* * *

><p>Hanna sipped from a cup of fruit punch as a kid named Brian seated across from her recounted his story. She leaned forward, elbows on knees, eyes wide with interest. "So they just kicked out? Just like that?"<p>

"Yup."

Phil, the spokesperson for the group, shifted in his chair. He was an overweight man whose voice "Brian, how did that make you -"

"Don't ask him how it made him feel," Hanna interrupted, rolling her eyes. "How do you think it made him feel? The kid was kicked out for being gay. Nothing says I support my child like throwing them out on the street for something they can't control."

Brian grinned and tucked a lock of blue-black hair under a blue-and-red striped hat. "They're coming around, Hanna. I'm living with my grandparents." Brian leaned back in his chair, eyeing Hanna up and down. "So. What's your story? We've all talked, but whenever it gets to you, you pass." He raised bushy black eyebrows. "'Sup with that?"

It was true. Besides introducing herself, Hanna hadn't said a word about her situation. She fidgeted as several pair of eyes landed on her. Piper, a girl with dyed pink hair who had on way too many bright colors, poked Hanna on her shoulder. "Come on. We're not stupid. You must have something going on."

Hanna glared. Piper had been with her girlfriend for a few months, and Hanna couldn't help but feel a little jealous. She let out a tired sigh. "Fine." She squared her shoulders. "This is the first time I'm saying these words out loud, okay?" A brief pause. "I'm bisexual. At least, I _think_ I am. I'm in love with my best friend. She's the only girl I ever crushed on, though. She's gay, but..." Hanna ran her tongue along the roof of her mouth, glad that all of these kids were from other schools, and not a single one was from Rosewood. She didn't want the information somehow leaking out to her mom before she could tell her herself._ Although I'm sure A has that covered._

Brian smiled. "What's her name?"

"Emily," Hanna said softly, surprised to feel her cheeks reddening. "Maybe I'm just..Emi-sexual."

Piper smirked. "You're blushing!"

"I am not blushing," Hanna grumbled, covering her face with her hands.

"Leave Hanna alone, Piper," Brian chided sternly. "Hanna, why don't you tell Emily how you feel?"

Hanna lowered her hands. "She's in love with one of my other friends."

"Did she say that?"

Hanna huffed. "She didn't have to. A t-A little birdie told me."

Piper's lips curved into a flirty smile. "Sorry about that. Hey, if I didn't already have a girlfriend, I'd date you. You're _totally_ hot."

Hanna's cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "Er, thank you."

Piper opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted by Phil standing up and announcing that their time was up. "We'll meet next week, people. Same time, same place. Chairs scraped against tiled floor and paper cups crumpled as the kids got ready to leave. Hanna was shrugging into her jacket when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

"Here," Brian said, shoving a piece of paper into Hanna's hand. There were two numbers scrawled on it in sloppy handwriting. The letter 'B' was underneath one of the numbers, the letter 'P' underneath the last. "Call me if you need anything, okay?" He gestured toward Piper over by the door. "The walking rainbow wanted you to have her number, too."

Hanna snickered. "How nice of you." She pulled out her phone, keying in the numbers and saving them to her contacts. "There, saved. I'll just send you a text."

Brian grinned and shoved his hands deep in his baggy pockets. "Cool. Adios, girl." His light blue eyes focused on something behind Hanna. "Don't be inappropriate," he warned before hurrying out of the room. "Good luck, Blondie." Hanna turned around to see around to see Piper standing behind her.

"What was he saying about me?" Piper asked, hazel eyes narrowing. "Ugh, did he call me the 'walking rainbow' again?"

Hanna laughed. "Yeah, he did! How did you know?"

Piper shook her head. "That little dork. We go way back. We met at one of these meetings a few years ago and we've been friends ever since. He's always called me that."

Hanna smiled. "Well, he seems like a nice kid."

"He is."

Hanna shifted her weight around. "So, er, Brian gave me your number. I already have it saved into my phone. I'll just text you my number later."

A small smile touched Piper's lips. "Thanks." She spread her arms. "Hug?"

Hanna blinked. "Um..."

"Oh, come on, I don't bite." Piper pulled Hanna into a tight hug and put her lips right next to her ear. "I meant what I said earlier. So if things don't work out with your little friend, give me a call." Piper broke the hug before Hanna could say anything. "See you around, cutie." She winked and sauntered out of the room.

Hanna furrowed her eyebrows together. _That girl doesn't waste any time._ Hanna slid her phone back into her purse and removed her car keys, walking out of the building and getting into her car. Almost automatically, her eyes fell on the picture of her and Emily. Her chest singed with pain. Even though the meeting had been helpful, it didn't change the fact that Emily would rather be with someone else. Hanna yanked her phone out of her purse and scrolled through her messages until she came across the picture A had sent her. Emily looked...happy. Hanna stared at the picture until her eyes begin to water and with a frustrated sigh, she threw it on her phone on the passenger seat. It bounced and landed on the floor. "Emily doesn't need me," Hanna muttered, ripping the picture from her dashboard. "And I don't need her." Hanna tore the picture in half and tossed the separate halves behind her. "From now on, I'll just ignore her entirely. No matter how much it hurts."

* * *

><p>Two weeks had passed since Hanna had decided to avoid Emily at all costs. In class, Hanna refused to speak to her. And every time Hanna caught a glimpse of the dark-haired beauty down the hall or heard her laugh, Hanna's heart flipped. Whenever Hanna dared to sneak at peek at Emily in her class, the butterflies in her stomach went crazy. It was becoming too much to handle. Hanna had even spent more and more time with Noel, figuring that eventually, she'd fall for him. But whenever he leaned into kiss her goodnight after one of their dates, she'd shut her eyes and think of Emily. She'd imagine that it was Emily's soft lips against hers, instead of Noel's rough ones. That it was Emily brushing her hair out of her eyes and whispering, <em>"See you tomorrow,"<em> before leaving Hanna alone on her doorstep. Hanna had even pretended it was Emily's voice over the phone instead of Noel's when he'd call her at night. A few times, Hanna had almost caved and talked to Emily, but she was too afraid of what Emily would say. She had even taken to avoiding Aria and Spencer, so she was definitely caught off-guard when Aria ambushed her in the hallway one day after school.

"Why are you avoiding us?" Aria asked. Aria wore a blue-and-black striped tank top with a red tie fastened securely around her waist, and a short black skirt with knee-high leather boots.

"Are you trying to get into the world's record book for wearing the weirdest outfits?" Hanna laughed. "You've got a long way to go until you beat Lady Gaga."

Aria blinked. "Funny. Now answer my question. You've been avoiding us. Why?"

Hanna shrugged. "Because of them," she said quietly, pointing behind Aria. Aria turned her head to see Spencer and Emily down the hall, leaning against a row of lockers and talking casually.

Aria turned back to Hanna. "What did they do?"

Hanna scowled. "Like you don't know. I can't believe you all kept it a secret from me. Do you know that made me feel?"

A look of bewilderment flashed across Aria's delicate features. "What are you _talking_ about?"

Hanna rolled her eyes. "Aria, don't blame dumb, okay? I really can't handle this right now."

Hanna tried to walk around Aria, but artsy girl reached out and grabbed Hanna's waist, stopping her. "You're not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on. Spencer and Emily didn't do anything."

"Really?" Hanna snorted. "Then explain this." She dug through her purse, retracting her phone and pulling up the picture A sent her. "Here," she mumbled, holding it up for Aria to see.

Aria squinted. "It's Spencer and Emily at the skating rink. So?"

"Read the caption." Hanna clicked down the page. Aria's lips moved silently as she read A's message. Hanna watched the realization flood over Aria's face. Aria's eyes shot up to Hanna's face.

"Wait...you..."

"For a while now."

"And you've never said anything about it?"

"I tried to say something a few times, but I lost my nerve. I told the kids at the LGBT meeting, though and they-"

"Wait, what?" Aria's eyebrows knitted together. "What LBGT meeting?"

Hanna took back her phone. "The one that was a couple weeks ago. It was advertised on posters all around the school."

Aria rubbed her eyes, trying to process the information she'd just learned. "Wait, so are you gay or bi?"

"Bi. I've known for a while. Just...never said anything."

Aria fiddled with her belt. A small laugh escaped her lips. "So Spencer and I are the only straight ones?" _Oh my God, Emily is going to freak._

Hanna smirked. "Yeah, aren't you missing out?"

Aria smiled broadly. "Guess so."

Hanna sighed. "I'm sorry. For ignoring you guys. I just..."

Aria held up her hand, cutting Hanna off in mid-sentence. "It's fine, but you need to talk to Emily and Spencer. Especially Emily."

Hanna played with the ends of her hair. It was a nervous gesture she'd picked up from watching Emily do it so often. "I know. I need to tell them that I'm happy for them, and-"

"They aren't dating," Aria interrupted Hanna again. "_Trust_ me. You have no idea what's going on. A was just trying to get inside your head."

Hanna let her gaze wander down the hall to where Emily and Spencer stood. She missed Emily so much it was killing her inside. "You promise?"

Aria nodded eagerly. "I swear on my life." She clamped down on Hanna's arm and started to drag her down the hall toward their friends. "You have to talk to them right now, Hanna."

Hanna halted and jerked her arm away, backpack almost sliding off her shoulders. "Wait! Now? I can't!"

"Yes, now!"

"But Aria..."

"Hanna, if you don't get your ass over there..." Aria trailed off. "Then I can't be held accountable for my actions."

Hanna blinked rapidly. "'Accountable for your actions'?" Hanna grinned. "You sound like Spencer." The blond quickly held up her hands when Aria glared at her. "Okay, I'll go. Sheesh."

Aria smirked in triumph and led Hanna down the hall. The closer Hanna got to Emily, the more her pulse increased. "Look who I found," Aria said, moving to stand against the lockers next to Spencer. "A lost lamb."

Spencer raised her eyebrows. "You're speaking to us again? Oh, thank you, Hanna. Thank you_ so_ much for gracing us with this incredible honor," Spencer grumbled, tone heavy with sarcasm.

Hanna recoiled. Okay. She deserved that. Hanna took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have ignored any of you. It was wrong and I'll never do it again."

Emily swallowed hard. She could smell Hanna's shampoo from Bath and Body Works._ Focus,_ Emily. "Why did you ignore us?"

"I'm sure she has a fabulous reason." Spencer mumbled.

Hanna glanced at Aria, eyes pleading with her for help. "A sent her a text," Aria said, coming to Hanna's rescue. "A made her think that you and Spencer were...dating."

A long silence settled between the four girls. Then Emily started to laugh. "_That's_ why you were so upset? Hanna, that's silly. Spencer and I are just friends. Besides, Spencer's straight."

Spencer pushed herself up off the lockers. "Absolutely. You shouldn't have freaked over that._ I should have just been honest with Aria._

Hanna breathed a sigh of relief, a wide smile on her face. "I'm so sorry, you guys. Forgive me?"

Emily beamed. "Duh, Hanna."

Spencer smiled. "Of course." She paused and held up a finger. "Hang on. Why did the idea of us being together upset you so much?" _Not that I need to ask._

Hanna's smile slowly faded. "Um..."

"Because she thought you guys were keeping it a secret and she was upset that you didn't tell her. She didn't want to make either of you uncomfortable by asking," Aria lied, coming to Hanna's rescue for the second time.

Spencer nodded thoughtfully. "Makes sense."_ I shouldn't have lied._

Emily played with her bracelet. "Yeah. So, sleepover tonight? Reunion?"

Hanna shot Aria an I-owe-you-big-time look. "Exactly. I shouldn't have listened to A."

"No, you shouldn't have." Aria linked her arm through Spencer's. "So, school's over, Spence. Come on."

Spencer raised an eyebrow. "Where exactly are we going?"

"You promised you'd help me with a project."

"I _did?_" Spencer asked, confused. This was news to her.

_"Yes,_" Aria responded sharply, digging her nails into Spencer's arm. "You two will have to have a duo sleepover instead of a quartet. Sorry, guys. Tomorrow, okay?" Aria dragged Spencer down the hall before the brunette could protest. Hanna made a mental note to buy Aria a new pack of drawing pencils and a sketchpad. And chalk. And...whatever else it was that Aria used to draw.

"And then there were two," Emily said, with a small laugh.

Hanna's heart fluttered in her chest and before she could stop herself, she flung her arms around Emily's shoulders, pulling her into a tight hug. "I missed you so much, Emily," she whispered into her ear. "I'm so sorry. Please don't be mad."

Emily inhaled slowly. Her skin prickled with goosebumps when she felt Hanna's breath on her earlobe._ Jesus_. "I missed you, too, Hanna. I'm not mad at you, I promise. I was hurt, but I understand now."

All too soon, Hanna broke the hug, afraid of what she might do if she held onto Emily any longer. Subconsciously, Hanna slid one of her hands into Emily's and squeezed gently. "Can I spend the night tonight?"

"Yeah! My mom won't care. She'll leave us alone for the most part." Her nose scrunched up. "She's been reading me passages out of the Bible lately," she added with a groan.

Hanna frowned. "She doesn't even know you're gay. Yikes, imagine what she'd do if she ever found out."

"Which will _never_ happen," Emily added, leading Hanna outside and to the parking lot. "Soo, just go home, pack a bag and meet me at my house. Sound good?"

"Sounds wonderful," Hanna said softly.

Emily laughed. "Good." Emily saluted. "See you soon, cadet."

Hanna smirked. "You're such a military brat," she teased, heart swelling with joy over finally talking to Emily again.

"Bite me."

Hanna arched a perfectly shaped eyebrow. "Is that a request? I might take you up on that." _Oh, shit. Did I really just say that?_

Emily's eyes widened. "Um," she laughed. "Please don't. Anyway, I'll see you back at my house." Hanna watched Emily get into her car and waited until she drove away before hurrying to her own car. She was going to tell Emily how she felt. Tonight.

* * *

><p>Later that night, Emily and Hanna were seated across from each other on Emily's bed with pillows and blankets between them. Hanna had gone home, packed a bag and told her mother she'd be sleeping at Emily's for the night. Ashley, surprised that her daughter was talking to her friends again, quickly agreed to let the blond go. When Hanna arrived at Emily's, she had walked in on Pam reading to Emily out of the Bible, while Emily sat in the armchair, looking like she'd rather have a root canal than sit through another minute of the torture her mother was putting her through. The second Emily saw Hanna, she'd leapt from the couch. "Hanna's staying over," was all she said before she tugged Hanna up to her room.<p>

"You weren't kidding about your mom reading to you from the Bible. I don't know how you can stand it." Hanna pulled feathers out of one of Emily's pillows.

Emily sighed. "I just tune her out. I think of friends. School. Whatever. Hey..." Emily unfolded her legs and got off her bed. "Want a snack?"

"Sure," Hanna agreed. "Anything is fine."

"Be right back," Emily called as she exited her room.

Hanna gazed around Emily's room. Trophies lined her dressers. Ribbons from her swim meets and pictures of Emily and her friends hung from a cork board on her wall above her desk. A few stuffed animals rested one one of her other dressers. Hanna smiled. Emily's room was so...well, Emily. As Hanna leaned back against Emily's headboard, her left elbow hit a stack of books off of Emily's nightstand. "Damn," Hanna groaned, bending over to pick up the books. She stacked Emily's chemistry and history textbooks on top of each other and piled a few notebooks on top, setting them carefully on her nightstand. As she picked up the last notebook, she'd noticed that it had fell open. Hanna was about to put it back when a few words on the page caught her eye. Hanna squinted. Glancing at the door, Hanna settled back against Emily's pillows, eyes quickly scanning down the page, skimming over words and sentences. Hanna bit her lip. She had found Emily's journal. "Don't read it, Hanna," she murmured to herself. "Don't..." But Hanna's curiosity got the better of her and she couldn't stop herself. She turned the page.

**_September 1st, 2011_**

**_I can't really deny my feelings for her anymore. Pretending like I'm not in love with her isn't doing anything. I can barely function around her now, isn't that silly? I don't know how to tell her. Or if I even should tell her. She's my best friend. What if I lose her forever? I can handle her not feeling the same way as I do about her, but I don't think I'd be able to take it if she dropped me as a friend._**

Hanna scraped her teeth against her lips. She knew she should put Emily's journal back. It was wrong, to read Emily's private thoughts. Hesitating, Hanna flipped back a few pages to an entry from a few months back.

_**May 25th, 2011**_

_**Ever since A came into my life, I've been terrified. My phone rings, and I jump. I see movement out of the corner of my eye, and my anxiety level skyrockets. I don't know how much more I handle. A is pushing me to my limit. I'm on edge all the time now. I wish A would just leave us alone. But even though I can barely hear a noise without flinching, nothing scares me more than how I feel about Hanna. How are you supposed to tell your best friend that you're in love with her?**_

Hanna had to reread Emily's entry several times before the words sunk in. Was she imagining them? Was she _dreaming?_ "Oh my God," she whispered, gripping the notebook tightly. She was certain her tired eyes were playing tricks on her. This wasn't real. Pulse racing, Hanna flipped forward a few entries.

**_October 12th, 2011_**

**_I should have known better. Hanna's dating Noel. Noel Kahn, the he-beast. She ignored me all weekend. So, I go to school, hoping to finally talk to her. Instead, I see her arms draped around Noel. I didn't think anyone could hurt me as much as Ali did. Ali was the queen of manipulation. She toyed with my heart. But when Noel kissed Hanna, I swear it felt like someone shut the oxygen off. I couldn't breathe. My heart felt like a knife was being pushed into it over and over. I love her. And she unintentionally ripped out my heart and stomped on it._**

Hanna swallowed hard, throat constricting. She broke Emily's heart? She caused her this much pain? "Oh, Emily..." Hanna heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs and she hurriedly shut Emily's notebook and shoved it under the others just as Emily appeared in the doorway, arms full of cans of pop and a bowl of popcorn.

"Sorry," Emily said, shutting the door with her foot. "My mom wouldn't let me leave the kitchen." Emily set down the snacks on one of her desk and crawled back on her bed. "I got popcorn and Cokes, but if you want..." She broke off at the look on Hanna's face. "...Are you okay?"

Hanna opened her lips. Her brain was on overload with everything she'd just read. She had been wrong this whole time. This whole time, Emily had been in love with _her_. Not Spencer. Not Aria. _Her._ "I..." Hanna shook her her head. "I'm fine. Tired," she said quietly. _What do I do? What do I say? Will Emily be mad at me for bringing this up? Of course she will, I read her private journal._

Emily laughed. "Well, we'll go to bed early tonight." She reached out and took one of Hanna's hands. "I'm so glad you came over. I missed you."

Hanna didn't say anything. She couldn't speak.

"...Hanna?" Emily cocked her head. "Are you sure you're-"

But Emily was cut off in mid-sentence when Hanna grabbed the collar of Emily's top and crushed their lips together.

* * *

><p>Phew, that was looong. :D Did you guys like it?<p>

I know, I'm evil for making you guys wait for Hemily to happen and then ending this chapter with a cliffhanger like this, butttttt, the next chapter will be filled with Hemily. ;)

So, how many of you are Sparia shippers? I love Sparia. "You're a freak and I love you." "You're really tiny and I love you." "I love you, too." And then when Aria smacked Spencer's butt in the fashion episode? Really? Those two are always flirting on the show xD. So my question is, when will Hemily happen? Did you guys know that in an interview, Ashley Benson said that Hanna belongs with Emily?

;) Just wait for it. It'll happen.

More to come! Please review. 3


	8. Could This Be Out Of Line?

I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sooo sorry! It took me forever to update. I'm back in school and it's taking up so much time. My semester this year is insane, you guys. Thank you all for reviewing! You guys are what keeps me motivated, not to mention this story is a lot of fun to write. I hope you enjoy the chapter!

* * *

><p>The second Emily felt Hanna's lips on hers, a billon explosions went off in her head. Tingles raced down her spine. Hanna's lips were incredibly soft and she tasted like strawberries. It took a full ten-seconds for Emily's brain to kick back into gear. When it did, she slid her arms around Hanna's neck and deepened their kiss, forcing Hanna back against her pillows, fingers getting lost in Hanna's wavy blond locks. This was unbelievable. Was she dreaming again or was she really <em>kissing<em> Hanna Marin on her bed? Emily gasped softly when she felt Hanna's teeth gently bite down on her lower lip. Just as Emily was about to part her lips, her phone bleeped loudly and Emily jerked back so fast she nearly fell off her bed. She fumbled for her phone on her table, relieved it was only Aria calling. "I'll call you back," Emily mumbled into the phone, immediately hanging up and tossing her phone back on her nightstand. She glanced at Hanna, surprised to see that she was breathing heavily. Emily dropped her eyes to her blankets. A long beat of silence passed between the two girls before Emily finally spoke.

"_What_ was that?" Emily asked, raising her eyes to Hanna's face.

Hanna swallowed. "T-that was me, Hanna Marin, attacking you, Emily Fields."

Emily couldn't help but to smirk. "Fair enough answer. Okay, let's try another one. _Why_ in the _world_ did you kiss me?" _Not that I minded_, she added silently to herself.

Hanna ran her fingers across Emily's bedspread. "I..." _Say it, Hanna. Just tell say it._ "I kissed you, because..."

Emily shifted closer to Hanna. "You kissed me because..." she waved her hand in a circular motion, indicating for Hanna to continue.

Hanna sighed. _Here we go._ "Whenever you're around me, I can't breathe. When you smile at me, my heart melts. And whenever you touch me, my pulse skyrockets. You're all I can think about, Emily." Hanna paused and tentatively took one of Emily's hands. "You're the last thought on my mind when I go to sleep and the first thought on my mind when I wake up. I...I'm in love you and I couldn't hold it in any longer."

Emily stared at her. "Y-you're in love with me?"

Hanna nodded.

"B-but what about Noel? You...he..and you just cheated on him!" Emily exclaimed, eyes widening.

Hanna shook her head. "Noel's nothing. I'm only dating him to make you envious."

Emily blinked._ Aria was right._ "Well, it's working," she said with a nervous laugh. "Hanna..." She took Hanna's face between her hands. "You don't know how-"

"Wait," Hanna whispered, gently removing Emily's hands from her face. "I have to tell you something first. You might get mad."

Emily's eyebrows knitted together. "Okay..." she said slowly.

Hanna's eyes flashed from the stack of notebooks on Emily's nightstand and back to Emily's face. "I read your journal. Not all of it, just three entries. I didn't mean to, I swear. I accidentally knocked some of your books off your nightstand, and it was open when I picked it up. I know I shouldn't have read it, but I did. I'm really sorry. I'll understand if you're upset, and -"

Emily pressed her pointer finger against Hanna's lips, silencing her. "You talk really fast when you're nervous, did you ever notice that? I'm not mad at you. Actually, I was hoping you'd go through them and stumble across my journal," she confessed. "I was too afraid to tell you that... I love you, too."

Hanna smiled. "Please say that again."

"I love you."

"Again?"

Emily giggled. "I love you, Hanna Marin. I've loved you for a long time now. I just...I was so scared to tell you."

Hanna grinned from ear-to-ear. "I wish I would have told you how I felt sooner."

"Me too, Han."

"Soo..."

"So..."

Emily picked up one of Hanna's hands and kissed the back of it. Hanna's skin prickled with excitement. "I think you know what I want to ask."

"I think so," Hanna breathed.

Emily pushed her blankets and pillows of her bed and scooted across the bed until she was right in front of Hanna. The dark-haired girl intertwined their fingers. "Okay..."

"Yes?" Hanna asked, locking their eyes together.

"Do you..."

"Do I..." Hanna's heart thumped against her chest.

"Do you know...the muffin man?" Emily asked, a serious expression on her face.

A smile touched the corners of Hanna's lips. "Do I know... the muffin man? Yes, I know the muffin man. Who lives on Drury Lane?"

Emily nodded before bursting into giggles. After her laughter subsided, she cleared her throat and made direct eye contact with Hanna. "Okay, time for the real question. Will you...be my girlfriend?"

Hanna cupped Emily's face between her hands. "I thought you'd never ask," she whispered before closing the small gap between them. Hanna marveled at the fact that their lips fit together perfectly. Their mouths moved together in synch and a small shock went through Hanna when she felt Emily's tongue graze her lower lip. Hanna parted her lips, allowing Emily to slip her tongue inside. Their tongues battled for dominance as they explored each other's mouths. Hanna's fingers disappeared into Emily's silky black hair as their kiss intensified, and the blond soon found herself on her back with Emily lying fully on top of her, not once breaking contact. Hanna's fingers ran up and down the small of Emily's back as she held the brunette as close to her as possible. "Em," Hanna sighed when Emily trailed kisses down her jawline and to her neck. Emily planted kisses down Hanna's neck, stopping just above her collarbone. Emily started to suck on Hanna's pulse point and the blond-haired inhaled sharply beneath her.

"That tickles," Hanna giggled, entangling her fingers in Emily's hair again.

"Good," Emily smirked, breath hot against Hanna's skin. Emily lifted her head up and traced Hanna's collarbone with a finger. "You know, you're technically cheating on Noel."

Hanna sat up, shrugging. "So?"

"So it's not right."

Hanna sighed. "You're right, it's not. Hand me my phone. I'll end things with him through a text and explain it to him at school."

Emily plucked Hanna's phone off her nightstand and handed it to her. "Breaking up with someone through a text is so _cliche_," she goaded.

"Do you want to wait until tomorrow to kiss me again?" Hanna asked, already composing a message.

"...No."

"Exactly," Hanna smirked. She hit send and placed her phone back on Emily's nightstand. "There. I've officially broken up with Noel." Hanna laid down on Emily's bed and pulled Emily down next to her, sliding an arm around her waist. Hanna rolled over on her side so the girls were face-to-face. "And I'm finally with the one person I love," she said softly, resting her forehead against Emily's.

Emily smiled. "Took us long enough."

"Too long," Hanna muttered, leaning in to peck Emily's lips.

Emily buried her face in the crook of Hanna's neck and closed her eyes. "I would have waited twenty more years for you, Hanna."

Hanna gently scratched Emily's scalp. "I would have waited thirty for you."

"An eternity."

"..You win," Hanna giggled.

Emily slowly opened her eyes. "I'm serious. I would have waited forever for you. It feels like I have already."

Hanna lifted Emily's chin with her fingers so she could look into her eyes. "I know. Em, I promise, from this moment on, I will be the best girlfriend you've ever had. I'll treat you like a princess." She kissed Emily's forehead. "And I won't try to drown you," she added with a smirk.

Emily kissed Hanna's lips. "Please. I'd have to jump into the water to save you. Barbies can't swim," she chuckled. Emily laced their fingers together and pulled back from Hanna so the tips of their noses were touching. "Hanna, you're the only person I want to be with. I will do everything I can to make you happy. I love you."

Hanna pressed her lips to Emily's again. "Listen to how sappy we both sound. I love you, too." She reached over Emily and turned off her lamp, plunging them into darkness. Hanna gathered Emily into her arms and hid her face in her hair.

"Never leave me, Hanna." Emily's eyes fluttered shut.

"I won't," Hanna murmured against Emily's neck. "I will never leave you." Hanna closed her eyes and listened to Emily's steady breathing until sleep overcame her.

* * *

><p>"Hanna, get up."<p>

Hanna mumbled and pulled the covers over her. "No."

"Hanna, seriously. You have to get ready for school."

Hanna picked up a pillow and threw it over her face. "I'm ditching," she said, voice muffled by the pillow. "Ditch with me."

Emily laughed. "Neither one of us are ditching." Emily crawled on her bed and yanked the covers off Hanna. Hanna groaned and immediately curled into a ball. "Hanna, don't you want to shower? We fell asleep in our clothes from yesterday."

"You shower first."

"I already showered. I'm ready for school." Emily lightly smacked Hanna's leg. "Up." When Hanna showed no signs of getting up, Emily snatched the pillow away from her and tossed it on the floor. "Get up, Marin!"

Hanna's eyes shot open and she sat up fast, blond hair askew. "Hey!" she cried out sleepily. "Emily, not fair. You-"

Emily grabbed Hanna's face between her hands and kissed her hard, pushing her against her headboard. She forced her leg between Hanna's and slithered into her lap. Hanna gasped and wrapped her arms around Emily's neck, kissing her back just as eagerly. Smirking, Emily took Hanna's bottom lip between her teeth and tugged on it gently, earning a moan from Hanna. But all too soon, Emily pulled away and got off her bed, like nothing had happened.

"What...the...hell..was...that?" Hanna asked, panting.

"That was your good morning kiss. Now, if you want me to kiss you like that again, you'll get your butt out of my bed."

Hanna scowled and scampered out of Emily's bed. "You don't play fair," she said as she picked up her bag and headed into Emily's bathroom.

"All's fair in love and war. My mom's downstairs, so hurry up so we can get out of here. She isn't exactly thrilled with the fact that you slept over on a school night. She hates it when you do that."

Hanna smirked and leaned against the doorframe of Emily's bathroom. "I wonder how she'd feel if she knew I had my tongue in down your throat last night."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Go shower."

"Okay, okay." Hanna disappeared into Emily's bathroom. Then she poked her head out. "Em?"

"What?" Emily sighed.

Hanna's lips twitched into a flirty smile. "I'm loving your outfit. Black skinny jeans and a dark red shrug over a blank tank? I approve. You look hot. As always. " She shut the bathroom door before Emily could answer.

* * *

><p>Forty minutes later, Hanna and Emily were standing outside of their school. Hanna was dressed in a pair of light blue jeans a single-shoulder baby blue shirt. Her ravishing blond hair flowed straight down her shoulders and her earrings glistened in the sunlight. Hanna glanced at Emily and held out her hand. "Ready?"<p>

Emily laced her fingers through Hanna's. "Ready. You're lucky we're not late since we had to swing by your house for your backpack."

"I forgot it. We drove here in separate cars, silly. You didn't have to stop by my house with me." Hanna mumbled. "I wasn't worried about my backpack when I was packing my bag last night, Em. I was more concerned about how telling how I felt would play over."

Emily grinned and pecked Hanna's cheek. "I wanted to. Come on, _sweetheart._" The girls walked hand-in-hand into the school.

* * *

><p>"I really don't understand how I haven't lost my sanity," Spencer commented as she leaned against the locker next to Aria's. "This whole thing is enough to make anyone lose their mind. Why are we still standing upright?"<p>

"We've been traumatized enough that nothing will ever break us," Aria responded as she removed books from her locker. Aria slammed her locker shut. "At least it's almost the weekend, right?"

Spencer nodded. "I can't wait for another weekend." Spencer peered over Aria's shoulder at something down the hall. "Turn around and tell me if I'm seeing what I think I'm seeing. I'm probably just hallucinating."

Aria raised an eyebrow and turned around. Hanna and Emily were walking towards them, holding hands and smiling. A huge grin split across Aria's face as the couple reached them. "You two are together?"

Emily smiled and squeezed Hanna's hand. "Yes."

"Finally, huh?" Hanna ran her thumb across Emily's palm.

Aria beamed. "That is fantastic! I am so happy for you two. I want details. Isn't this fantastic, Spencer?" _Just accept them. Look how happy they are._

Spencer forced a smile. "It's unbelievable. Congratulations, you two."_ Really unbelievable._

Hanna grinned. "I'm really lucky."

"I'm lucky," Emily said.

Aria rolled her eyes and smiled. "Are you two going to be one of_ those_ couples?"

Hanna lifted an eyebrow. "What couples?"

Aria shifted her books into her other arm. "You know, one says, 'I love you,' and the other says, 'I love you more!' and the other responds by saying, 'No, I love you more!'" Aria laughed. "One of those couples."

Hanna rolled her eyes. "Yeah, of course. Last night, we planned out how we would be as a couple. We wrote everything down," she grumbled sarcastically.

Emily smirked, immediately catching on. "Who will be the one in charge.."

"Which one of us will be the romantic one.." Hanna added.

"Which one of us forgets the anniversaries or when we have a date..."

"Really?" Spencer tilted her head.

"No," Hanna laughed. "We were kidding."

Aria smirked. "Cute. But you might want to turn around and see who's heading our way."

Hanna and Emily swiveled around to see Noel heading towards them. He had a hardened expression and his posture was rigid as he stormed towards them. He stopped next to Emily, eyes fixated on Hanna. "Hanna, we need to talk."

"Do we?" Hanna inquired. "About what?"

"Why did you break up with me?" Noel's eyes traveled from Emily to Spencer and then to Aria. "Ladies, do you mind if I borrow Hanna for a few minutes?"

"Actually, Noel, I do mind if you borrow _my_ girlfriend," Emily said, matter-of-factly.

Noel blinked. "Excuse me? Your girlfriend?"

Hanna nodded. "That's right. You heard her correctly. I broke up with you for her. Kind of a downer, huh?"

Noel shook his head. "I don't understand."

Spencer sighed. _Why am I not surprised?_ "How can you not understand that? Hanna broke up with you for Emily. Your relationship with Hanna is kaput."

Hanna shrugged. "I'm sorry I did it through a text, but-"

"You broke up with Noel through a text?" Aria asked incredulously.

"Yeah, she did," Noel snapped. "She didn't have the guts to do it in-person."

Hanna frowned. "Actually, I didn't want to cheat on you, so I ended things right away. Noel, I'm sorry, but...I don't have feelings for you. I've..." Hanna paused and smiled at Emily. "I've loved Emily for a long time now and I was too afraid to say anything. I never would have imagined that she'd feel the same way."

Emily grinned and lifted their hands up, kissing the back of Hanna's hand wordlessly.

Noel glanced back and forth between Emily and Hanna. Their hands were linked together and they stood close to each other - like they were afraid of letting the other go, afraid that if they let go, they'd never see each other again. Emily's dark-brown eyes were soft and expressive. Hanna's electric-blue eyes were lit up with excitement. And they were smiling. _Really_ smiling. Not the fake I'm-really-okay-even-though-my-best-friend-was-murdered smile he'd seen the four girls plaster on their faces. He wasn't the smartest guy, but he was smart enough to recognize actual love. He ran his fingers through his short, dark hair. "Well, if you're happy, I'm happy for you."

The girls' jaws dropped in unison.

"What?" Hanna asked, surprise evident in her tone.

Noel shrugged. "I can see you two love each other. So...good luck. Treat each other well." A genuine smile spread over his lips. "I can't say I'm happy, but you two do look good together. _Ridiculously_ hot, I might add." He winked and looped off the down the hall. "HEY, MONA," he yelled, hurrying to catch up with the school's gossip queen. "WAIT UP!"

The girls stared after him. Spencer shook her head. "That was..."

"..Unexpected," Aria finished.

"Completely." Emily squeezed Hanna's hand. That went much better than she'd originally anticipated.

Hanna chuckled. "What a relief. Anyway, we'll see you guys later. I have to do something. Come on, Fields." Emily waved to her friends and Hanna dragged her down the hall and into the nearest bathroom.

* * *

><p>Inside the bathroom, Hanna set down her purse and backpack on the floor, quickly checking underneath the stalls to make sure no one else was in the bathroom with them.<p>

"What are you doing?" Emily asked, resting her back against the bathroom wall and dropping her backpack next to Hanna's. "And be careful with your things," she added, setting her purse down on top of her backpack. "They aren't cheap."

Hanna kicked the first stall door open, flinching silently when it made contact with the stall wall. "You sound like my mom. And I'm making sure no one else is in here."

_Bang!_ Hanna kicked another stall door open. Then another.

"Hanna," Emily chuckled. "I doubt anyone's sitting on a toilet with their knees pulled up to their chest. I think we're safe Unless you want to check the vent as well."

Hanna kicked the last door open. "You think someone could really be up there?" she asked, blue eyes shifting to the vent on the ceiling. "Ew, it's probably filthy in there. And this is a new outfit, so...you go, Em. I'll hoist you up."

Emily blinked. "There's no one in the vent, Barbie. Care to tell me why you hauled me away from our friends?" she asked, eyebrows raised in amusement.

Hanna sighed and walked over to Emily, pulling the taller girl in her arms. "I wanted to ask you something. And I wanted us to be alone. I know this isn't the most romantic place in the world, but..."

Emily wrapped her arms around Hanna's neck and brushed her fingertips down the back of it. "What is it?"

Hanna's eyes fluttered shut momentarily. "I'm going to have to ask you not to do that, or I won't be able to concentrate."

Emily chuckled. "Okay, what did you want to ask?"

Hanna took a deep breath and looked into Emily's eyes. Why did she suddenly feel nervous? "Will you go out on a date with me? Our first real date. Tonight."

Emily cocked her head and pressed her lips to Hanna's in a firm kiss. She pulled away just slightly so their lips brushed together. "I would love to go on a date with you. What's the plan?"

Hanna smiled. "Skating. An indoor ice rink."

"You're coordinated enough to skate?" Emily teased.

"Shut up," Hanna laughed. "So, skating?"

"Skating."

"At seven?"

"Seven it is."

"And your mom won't care that you're going out on a school night?"

"She won't care as long as I'm back by ten."

"Good." Hanna reluctantly pulled away and picked up her stuff. "Let's go suffer through six hours of hell, Em," she sighed, handing Emily her belongings.

Emily intertwined their fingers. "It'll be easy since I'm with you."

"You're a sappy romantic."

"And you're a snazzy romantic. Can we go now?"

Hanna smirked and lead Emily out of the bathroom.

* * *

><p>After school, Emily was putting her books back into her locker when she spied a small, blue box on her top shelf. It had a red ribbon tied around it and a folded up piece of paper underneath the ribbon. Emily's sympathetic nervous system kicked into gear and her palms began to sweat. Had A left this? Emily's fingers trembled as she picked up the box and shut her locker.<em> God, what could be inside?<em> Heart racing, Emily slid the piece of paper out from underneath the ribbon and unfolded it.

**Hey, love. I decided I wanted to the the romantic one. So, I've left you a little gift. Consider this the first of many that you will find. I can't wait for our date tonight. I've never been more excited for anything in my life. Even more than the time the Coach store at the mall had that fifty percent off sale! - Hanna**

Emily smiled and carefully removed the lid from the box. Inside, was a heart-shaped Hershey's kiss. "How sweet of you, Hanna," she whispered to herself. Emily unwrapped her piece of chocolate and popped it in her mouth.

"What have you got there, Em?" Spencer asked, appearing out of nowhere. Her field hockey bag was slung over her shoulder and her arms were full of textbooks. Spencer craned her neck and peered at the box in Emily's hand. "Why are you holding an empty box and ribbon?"

"It had chocolate inside it," Emily explained, showing Spencer the empty wrapper. "Hanna left me a heart-shaped piece of chocolate and had this note under the ribbon. Emily held out the letter to Spencer. "Read it."

Spencer shoved her armload of books into Emily's arms and grabbed the letter a little more forcefully than she intended, accidentally tearing off a corner. "Oops," she muttered, eyes flying down the page. A small bubble of jealously sprung to life in the bottom of Spencer's stomach. _How repugnantly engaging of you, Hanna._

"Isn't that so sweet?" Emily gushed.

Spencer's fingers twitched. "I hope it was dark chocolate. It can be good for you."

Emily laughed and exchanged Spencer her books for her letter. "It was a Hershey's kiss. Milk chocolate." Emily folded up the letter into a triangle, unzipped her purse and nestled it in the inside pocket. "Hey, you know that? Hanna and I are going on our first date tonight." Emily looked up from her purse. "We're going skating. Isn't that great?"

Spencer blinked hard. _Great? More like a disaster._ "Yeah, Em," she replied with a tight smile. "That's superb! I hope you have fun."

"I'm going on a date with Hanna. How can I not have fun?"

_You'd have more fun with me._ Spencer lifted a shoulder in a half shrug. "Just be careful. I know how you two get."

Emily pursed her lips together. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Spencer rose both eyebrows and tightened her grip on her books. "What about the time the two of you got locked in the sporting store at the mall?"

"That was Hanna's fault. The store was closing and she realized she left her purse in a tent. We were shopping for my swimming stuff."

"And how exactly did Hanna's purse get inside a tent?"

"I just told you, she left it there."

"Right, but _how_ did her purse get inside there in the first place?"

"...We were playing hide-and-seek," Emily said, grinning at the memory. "It's not my fault, I swear. She started it."

"And before that, what were you two doing what?"

"..Fighting each other with plastic bats."

Spencer nodded slowly. "And before that?"

Emily switched her purse to her other shoulder, eyes roaming the slowly emptying hall in search of her girlfriend. "We played Capture the Flag and used silly string as a weapon."

"Precisely. And the two of you wonder why you got banned."

Emily snickered. "Oh, we're so devastated by that. Our lives will be forever ruined because we can't go back in the sporting store at the mall. Excuse me while I go home and cry while listening to Alanis Morissette."

Spencer shook her head. "You even picked up Hanna's sarcasm."

"That's a bad thing?"

"Emily, look, I just think-"

"Oh, come on. You were minutes away from pulling him down on his desk by his tie and screwing him. The look of desire in your eyes was undeniable." Hanna walked up to Spencer and Emily with an irritated-looking Aria behind her. "Tell Aria she was seconds away from sexing up Mr. Fitz in English today."

"That's bull. I just said I thought he looked nice," Aria muttered. "And would you keep your voice down? God."

Emily slid her fingers into Hanna's. It was a simple gesture that shot tingles down her spine. A simple gesture that made Hanna's heartbeat rate increase tenfold. "You looked like you wanted to have sex with him."

"Thank you," Hanna threw her free hand up in the air. "I told you, Aria."

Aria scowled. "Emily's only agreeing with you because she's your girlfriend. Right, Spencer?"

Spencer opened her mouth to reply, but Emily quickly interjected. "I am not. It's true." She quickly kissed Hanna's cheek. "Thanks for the chocolate."

Aria smiled, one eyebrow raised. "Chocolate?"

"I left her a chocolate kiss in her locker to find," Hanna admitted, a blush appearing on her cheeks.

"Aww!" Aria cooed. "That's so sweet. It's only day one and already you two get my vote for cutest couple this year."

Spencer fought the strong urge to roll her eyes. "I'm late for something. I'll see you guys later." Spencer side-stepped around her friends and walked briskly down the hall.

"Spencer's acting like she was told she's no longer in the run-in for Valedictorian." Hanna said, watching Spencer push a small freshman out of her way as she hurried out the front doors of their school.

Aria bit the inside of her cheek. _She_ knew why Spencer was behaving oddly. But how was she supposed to tell two of her best friends that their_ other_ best friend didn't approve of their newfound relationship? That was an awkward conversation she didn't want to have. Besides, it was Spencer's place to tell, not hers. "She's always stressed," Aria finally said. "You know how she is."

Emily nodded. "She had a hundred textbooks in her arms."

"A hundred, Em?" Hanna smirked.

"Oh, you know what I mean!" Emily playfully bumped Hanna's shoulder with her own. She had a lot. Anyway, I have to get home and do my homework before our date tonight."

Aria's attention snapped back to her friends when she heard the word _date_ come out of the dark-haired girl's mouth. Her eyes glistened. "You two have a date? That's so cool! What is it? Dancing? Dinner?"

"Skating," Emily and Hanna replied simultaneously.

Aria smiled. "Stop doing that. Aw, that's sweet. I hope you two can keep your hands off each other long enough to skate."

Hanna titled her head. "Uh, that's kind of the whole point, Ar. Hold each other while we skate."

"...Good point," Aria laughed. "I want details after this date. I still haven't gotten details about last night. Who kissed whom?"

Emily started to reply, but Hanna quickly slapped a hand over her mouth. "Let her figure it out for herself. She can play detective."

Aria's nose wrinkled. "Ugh, no thank you. We've all played enough of that game trying to figure out who 'A' is."

"A bitch with superpowers." Hanna responded dryly, removing her hand from Emily's mouth. I still can't believe I fell for "A's" trap and thought Spencer and Emily were dating.

Emily, as if reading Hanna's thoughts, pulled her hand out of Hanna's and slipped her arms around her neck. "Let's not think about 'A' tonight. Tonight is about you and me. I love you."

Hanna's heart thudded. "Deal. I love you, too, Em." She pressed her lips to Emily's in a soft kiss.

Aria grinned. "Alright, you lovebirds, I'm out of here. Have fun on your date. I expect details after from either one of you. That is, if you're not too busy," she said with a wink and walked off down the hall.

"I think she's more excited than I am," Emily muttered as she twirled Hanna's hair around a finger.

Hanna smirked. "So, you admit you're excited to go on a date with me?"

"I'm only excited for the hot chocolate afterwards."

Hanna laughed breezily. "I think I can do better than hot chocolate."

Emily raised an eyebrow and detached her arms from Hanna's neck. "I don't know, hot chocolate is pretty darn good."

"I'm hurt." Hanna stuck out her lip in a fake pout.

"Right. So, if you're done with your I'm-so-upset charade, I'd like to go home. I do have a lot of homework."

Hanna snickered. "Fine. I'll pick you up at seven o' clock, sharp."

"In your dream car?"

"Duh, what else?"

"I'll be waiting." Emily smiled lightly and leaned in to kiss Hanna, ignoring the wolf-whistles from the guys nearby. Hanna kissed her back hard, tangling her fingers in Emily's silky hair. When they finally pulled away for air, everyone was staring at them. "What?" Hanna snapped. "You've never seen two girls kiss before? Put your eyeballs back in your heads and go back to obsessing over_ True Blood,_ you dimwitted buffoons."

Emily giggled as people around them slowly turned away. "Nice one."

"Thanks." Hanna beamed.

Emily pecked Hanna's cheek. "I'll see you tonight, Han."

"I'll be counting the minutes."

"How cheesy of you, Marin."

"I can't be witty all the time. A girl needs rest."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Yes, it must be so tiring being the fabulous Hanna Marin. You're so weird."

"You have_ no_ idea."

Emily laughed and tugged Hanna down the hall and out the doors of the school, only letting go when they reached their cars. "Do you have a time machine? I want it to be time for our date."

"Sorry, but Spencer hasn't invented one yet."

Emily chuckled. "Spencer would invent the first time machine."

"Right?"

Emily unlocked her car and climbed in, turing her car on and rolling down her window. "Au revoir, mon amour," she said with a surprisingly good French accent.

"Huh?" Hanna smiled.

Emily laughed. "It's French for 'goodbye, my love'. You take French with me. You should know this."

Hanna bent down and stuck her head in Emily's car, putting her lips right next to Emily's ear. "I'm too busy staring at you to pay attention, Em," Hanna whispered. Emily shut her eyes when she felt Hanna's smooth lips on her ear. A small gasp escaped her when Hanna gently bit down on her earlobe, her stomach twisted together in knots. "So, really, it's all your fault." The blond pulled back and tucked a strand of her behind her ear. _"Au revoir, mon amour,"_ she mimicked playfully, smirking at Emily's expression.

Emily swallowed and shifted into reverse. She slowly backed up and switched to drive. "You sound like a man," was all she said before she carefully drove away.

Hanna watched Emily turn out of the school's parking lot and drive down the road until she could no longer see her car. "Emily Fields is going to be the death of me one day." Hanna climbed into her car and drove home to get ready for what she was sure was going to be the best date of her entire life.

* * *

><p>So, there you have it! :P Our girls are officially together. What did you guys think? ;) Who's ready for a Hemily date in the next chapter?<p>

Keep the reviews coming, you guys are amazing!

By the way, do any of you know where I can find Brant Daughtery's recent Ustream? It was on October 2nd. If any of you can find it or know where I can find it, I will love you forever. I need it to hear him say a certain thing about Buttah and Benzo. ;)

Thanks!

P.S. Updates will be slow for a little while, at least until this semester is over. :( I'm sorry!


	9. A Quintessential Night

Hey, everyone! I hope you had a great holiday! I'm so sorry it took me this long to update. School was a killer for me this past semester, and unfortunately, I had to deal with an important health issue. Hopefully I'll be able to update more quickly. Once more, I want to thank everyone for sticking with this story. You guys are amazing! I hope you enjoy the chapter! =)

* * *

><p>"I'm so nervous," Hanna said loudly as she pulled a pair of hot pink sweatpants over her legs. Her phone lay propped up against a pillow on her bed, and it was on speaker so she could get ready as she talked to the person on the other end. After she had done her homework, Hanna had immediately called Brian to update him. They had been on the phone for the past two hours with Brian trying unsuccessfully to settle Hanna's nerves. "And I'm wearing sweats. Who wears sweats out on a date? Oh my God, what if I embarrass myself?" She ripped a matching sweatshirt from her closet off its hanger and yanked it on over her head. "I'll die."<p>

"You need to relax," Brian replied from the other end. "You're going to a skating rink, Hanna. You have to keep warm. Emily won't care how you're dressed. She'll just be happy to be with you."

Hanna mashed her lips together as she rifled through the large pile of gloves, hats and scarves. on her bed. "Still. I need to look cute."

"What color are your sweatpants?"

"Hot pink."

"Ew. Pink is _really_ overrated. I thought you knew that. It just looks gross now."

Hanna picked up a pair of matching gloves, a hat and a scarf, and stuffed them in the pockets of her sweats. "But Piper's hair is pink," she laughed. "Are you saying her hair looks gross?"

"Actually, her hair is blue this week. I told you, that girl is a walking neon sign." Brian chuckled. "Anyway, look, Emily loves you, right?"

"Blue?" The blond echoed. "_Yikes._" Hanna grinned. "Yes! I told you the second you picked up the phone, remember?"

"I remember. Exactly. She loves you. You could dress like a total slob and I bet she'd still find you gorgeous."

Hanna sighed and sat down on her bed. "Thanks, Brian. You're a great friend."

"Anytime. So, you're telling your mom, right?"

Hanna's nerves snapped. "Yeah. Do you think it's too soon?"

"She may not like it," Brian answered honestly. "But you and Emily love each other. That's all that matters. So, you should tell her. From what you told me, your mom sounds pretty laid back."

Hanna nodded. "You're right. Okay, I have to go. I'll call you when I get home after tonight."

"You'd better. Good luck, Blondie."

Hanna hung up her phone, got up and walked over to her door. She opened it and yelled for her mother to come upstairs. Then she plopped back on her bed. Seconds later, Ashley appeared in her daughter's doorway.

"What? I was on the phone."

"We need to talk," Hanna said quietly, pointing to her couch. "It's important."

Ashley frowned and sat down, worry lines creasing on her forehead. "What is it?" Had Hanna gotten into trouble again?

Hanna fiddled with her hands. _Breathe,_ her mind instructed. _You can do this_. "What if I told you that I have a date tonight with someone who isn't Noel?"

Ashley arched an eyebrow and leaned back against the couch. "What happened with him?"

Hanna sighed and plopped down next to her mom. "I broke up with him for someone else."

"Okay," Ashley said slowly. "Who is the new guy?"

"Um..." Sink or swim, Hanna. "A-actually, it's n-not a guy. I-I'm going out with Emily tonight. We-ah, um, started dating last night, and tonight is our first official date."

A stunned expression flashed across Ashley's face before she managed to speak. "You're gay, Hanna?"

Hanna shook her head. "N-no. Bisexual. I-I've know for a while, but I guess I was in denial." She paused momentarily. _Emily would have laughed at that rhyme_, she couldn't help but think. Taking a deep breath, she continued. "I'm sorry I didn't say anything sooner, Mom. B-but I was trying to figure myself out and I was trying to sort out my feelings for Emily."

Ashley sighed. What Hanna had just unloaded onto her was big, but she could understand why her daughter had been hesitant to tell her. "Hanna, sweetheart, you don't have to apologize for something like this. It was a big discovery and I'm just sorry you felt like you couldn't tell me. You should know that I will always love and support you."

All of the anxiety Hanna had about telling her mom left her body like air escaping from a balloon. She felt so relieved. "Y-you're not mad?"

"Of course not!" Ashley wrapped her arms around Hanna in a comforting hug. "I could never be mad at you for something like this."

Hanna broke the hug, smiling gratefully. She felt silly for thinking her mom might not accept her. "Thanks, Mom. Your support really means so much to me." She frowned suddenly, realizing something. "Wait. You didn't seem at all surprised when I told you that Emily would be my date tonight."

Ashley shrugged and stood up, dusting off any lint from Hanna's couch off her pants and shirt. "That's because I'm not surprised. The two of you were always the closest out of your other friends. Emily's a very sweet girl. I don't even have to have my usual talk with her like I have with the boys you've dated."

Hanna laughed. "No, you don't. She wouldn't even harm a fly nonetheless one of her friends."

"Or her girlfriend," Ashley teased her daughter playfully, smiling when Hanna blushed. "But Hanna, even though I trust you and Emily, you do know this means she can't sleep with you now when she spends the night, right? This has now become the No Boy Zone and the no Girl Zone_ unless_ your door remains open at all times."

Hanna gaped. "_What?_ But that's not fair! It's not like we can get each other pregnant! And you just said you trusted us! We're not going to have sex. We just started dating."

Ashley bit her lip. Hanna _did_ bring up some good points. "Still. Hanna, I would just feel better if you and Emily followed this rule. I don't ask much of you. Okay?"

"Where is she supposed to sleep? We still haven't fixed the guest room. She can't sleep on the couch! She needs a bed."

Ashley sighed. "You're not going to give up, are you?"

"Do I ever?" Hanna counter asked. "I get my stubbornness from you. Come on, Mom."

"...Fine," Ashley agreed. "But the door stays ajar. It doesn't have to be completely open, but it can't be completely shut, either. Deal?"

"...Deal." Hanna shrugged. _You know damn well I'm not going to listen_.

Ashley smiled. "Good. How does Emily's mom feel about you two going on a date? Does she know?"

Hanna let out a sarcastic snort. "Yeah! She bought Emily a big rainbow balloon and a banner that reads 'I Love My Lesbian Daughter.' It's really colorful."

Ashley rolled her eyes. "I could do without the sarcasm, Han. Wait, Pam doesn't even know Emily is gay?"

Hanna stood up and crossed the room to her closet. She flung open the door. "Mom, this is _Pam_ we're talking about. You know religious how she is. She'd probably douse Emily with holy water to cleanse her evil ways. She could just use soap. It's a lot easier to obtain." She started rooting her closet. "I'll suggest peach or mango scented body wash to her," Hanna said over her shoulder.

Ashley started to smile, but quickly masked it as a frown. "You know that's not funny."

"You're right, it's not funny. It's hilarious." Hanna said with a grin. Turning around, she dangled a pair of white ice skates with bright blue laces from her hands. "Found 'em!"

Ashley eyed the skates and Hanna's outfit. "I never thought I'd see you wearing a pair of sweats and a sweatshirt out on date."

Hanna shrugged. "There's a first time for everything." Glancing at the digital clock on her nightstand, she saw she had to pick Emily up in ten minutes. "I have to go," she muttered, rushing from her room and down the stairs. Ashley followed, stopping Hanna as she picked up her purse and keys off the kitchen table.

"Don't stay out too late. You still have school tomorrow."

"I know," Hanna mumbled, plucking a rose from the vase that rested on one of the kitchen countertops. "Emily has to be back by ten anyway, or her mom will blow a gasket." She tucked the rose safely into her purse, adding, "Her mom would blow a gasket if they stopped airing _The 700 Club_," under her breath.

Ashley rolled her eyes. Hanna was so sarcastic. "Have fun, sweetheart."

"I always have fun when I'm with Emily." Hanna said, blushing lightly. She hugged her mom quickly before running out of the house and climbing into her car. Taking a deep breath, she started the ignition, backed out of her driveway and started the drive to Emily's house.

* * *

><p>While Hanna was driving to Emily's, Emily was nervously pacing around her own kitchen. Hanna was going to be there any minute now. For their <em>date<em>. Their very first date. Emily was dressed in a dark pair of jeans, a light red sweater and a long, black Burberry coat Hanna had gotten her as a "just because" gift a while back. On her head was a gray, white and brown beanie. She had on matching gloves. "Relax," Emily coached herself quietly. "It's just a date. You can do this." Emily nervously twisted the green laces of her own skates together with her fingers. "You can do this," she repeated.

"Do what?" A voice behind her asked. Emily jumped, whirling around. Her mother stood in the entrance way to the kitchen. Pam gazed at Emily curiously. "Where are you going again?"

"U-uh, o-out," Emily answered. "You scared me, Mom. Sheesh."

"Out with whom?"

"Hanna." _Who else?_ Emily thought sarcastically. She was _always_ with Hanna.

"Again?" Pam walked into the kitchen and leaned against the wall behind her. "Well, how about you cancel your outing with Hanna tonight? She'll understand. Do you remember my friend from church, Anita?"

"Yes..."

"She thinks you'd be perfect for her son, Ricky. He's a handsome boy."

Really, Mom? Emily ran her her fingers across the countertop, gripping it slightly. "I don't need you to set me up on dates with guys." _Especially when I like girls._

Pam sighed. "Emily, look, I'd think you'd be happier if- you went out on a date. I think you'd have a lot of fun with Ricky. He's handsome, he's smart and he's an athlete. Give him a chance."

_He, he, he. Do you see a pattern here?_ How blind are you? Emily was about to respond when she spotted a flash of headlights in her driveway. Hanna. Grinning, she grabbed her purse and dashed to the front door, jamming her feet into her knee-high brown suede boots. "Bye!"

Pam sighed. Her daughter spent way too much with Hanna. "Have fun. Be home by ten."

"I will!" Emily rushed from the front door just as Hanna was getting out of her car. "Go, go, go," Emily said, throwing open the passenger side door. "Before my mom comes out here and tries to set me up again." Emily hopped in the car and buckled her seatbelt, almost sitting on Hanna's purse. She picked it up and placed it in her lap as Hanna got back in the driver's side.

Hanna arched a blond eyebrow, sticking the key in the ignition and turning it. The car sprung to life and she carefully backed out of the driveway. "Your mom tried to set you up?"

Emily nodded. "Yup. She thinks her son's friend, Ricky, would be perfect for me."

Hanna snorted. "Unless Ricky has a pair of melons, I highly doubt that."

Emily chuckled. Glancing at Hanna, she inched her hand over and squeezed the other girl's arm gently. "I missed you."

"Not as much as I missed you," Hanna replied, keeping her eyes locked on the road. She rolled to a stop at a red light. "There's something in my purse for you."

Curious, Emily unzipped Hanna's purse and pulled out the long rose. "Oh, Hanna. It's beautiful. Thank you! You're so thoughtful."

A light blush colored Hanna's pale cheeks. "It's our first date. I wanted it to be special."

Emily grinned. "It's already special because I'm with you."

Hanna smiled. "_Now,_ who's sweet?"

"Me?"

"Good job!" Hanna hesitantly let go of the wheel, making sure to keep her right foot firmly against the brake. She took the rose out of Emily's hand and set in her lap. "You're such a smart girl," she giggled. The blond gently held Emily's face between her hands and kissed her. Emily, surprised, snaked a hand behind Hanna's head and kissed her back. Hanna parted her lips when she felt Emily's tongue graze her lower lip. But, just then, the person in the car behind them blared their horn and the girls sprang apart. Hanna peeked at the light. How long had it been green for? She started to drive again. "Oops."

Emily giggled. "Great job, Marin. You're supposed to be paying attention to the road."

"You distracted me!"

"You kissed me first, sweetie."

Hanna shrugged. "I didn't hear you complaining." They passed an old, rundown car dealership, two movie theaters and a McDonald's before they pulled into the Rosewood Skating Rink. The parking lot was packed, and Hanna had to circle around the building twice before she was able to pull into a spot. She turned the car off and got out, hurrying over to Emily's side of the door. She opened it and held out her hand, grinning. "Come on."

Emily unbuckled her seatbelt and allowed Hanna to help her out of the car. "What a_ gentleman_ you are," she teased playfully.

Hanna gasped. "Hey!" She took her purse from her girlfriend and shut the car door. "That's not very nice. I thought you were the sweet one."

Emily shot Hanna a grin. "Maybe I'm not who everyone thinks I am." She linked her fingers through Hanna's. "You look beautiful, by the way."

Hanna tucked a runaway strand of Emily's dark hair under her beanie. "Thank you, but you look stunning."

Emily squeezed Hanna's hand and led the way into the skating arena. Hanna paid for the entry fee and they walked down a hall and into the large skating rink. People were twirling around on the ice. A few couples were holding each other. Kids skated around, chasing one another. Emily turned to Hanna excitedly. "Let's go put on our skates!" She grabbed Hanna's hand and dragged over to a small set of lockers to put away their shoes and purses.

* * *

><p>"They just walked in."<p>

"I can't believe I let you talk me into this."

Spencer adjusted her black cap and skated behind a group of teenagers from another school, pulling Aria behind her. Through a gap between two of them, she could see Hanna helping Emily with her skates. "What's wrong with wanting to see how my friends' first date goes?" Spencer murmured, eyes never leaving her friends. Emily and Hanna stood up wobbly. Emily skated forward, almost falling, but Hanna caught her around the waist from behind. Emily leaned back into Hanna's arms, and the blond whispered something in Emily's ear. Emily then turned and kissed Hanna on her lips. Spencer scowled.

"S-Spencer, let go! You're crushing my hand!" Aria yanked her hand out of Spencer's tight grasp and rubbed it. "Sheesh!"

Spencer muttered an apology, eyes following Emily and Hanna as they stepped onto the rink and skated. She quickly tugged Aria away before they were seen. "Come on."

* * *

><p>"Whoa," Hanna giggled. "I'm shaky on these." She dug through the pocket of her sweatpants and pulled out her gloves, hat and scarf. She rammed her hat onto her head, slid her hands in her gloves and wrapped her scarf around her neck. "All set!" She looked Emily up and down appreciatively. "Of course you would dress hot for our date. I look like a hobo."<p>

Emily rolled her eyes. "You do not. You look really cute. Honest."

Hanna smiled from ear to ear. Her insides felt gooey whenever Emily complimented her. She slowly skated backwards. "Did I say you looked hot? I meant not."

Emily's jaw dropped. "Hey! Take that back!"

Hanna skittered around a small child skating in front of her. "Make me!" She stuck out her tongue in a playful manner.

"I will!"

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah!"

Hanna turned around. "You'll have to catch me first!" She smirked and dashed forward.

Emily gasped and clumsily skated after her. "Get back here, Hanna!"

"No!" Hanna laughed, ducking under the arms of a small cluster of teens who were playing Crack the Whip.

"Yes!" Emily maneuvered around the group, chasing after Hanna as steadily as she could. She tripped and fell forward into Hanna, sending them both spiraling on the ice.

* * *

><p>Aria laughed. She and Spencer were seated at a table on the other side of the arena, watching Hanna and Emily skate around. "Aw, they look like they're having fun. Besides the crash that just happened."<p>

Spencer shrugged a shoulder. "Yeah." She knew she should be happy for them, but she just couldn't help it. She was so jealous. "Oodles."

Aria frowned. "Spencer, I know you think that they're going to ditch us, but they wouldn't do that. Especially now, with everything we're dealing with. You'll see."

The taller brunette exhaled. Aria just wouldn't understand why Spencer was _really_ jealous. "I guess you're right."

"I am. Trust me."

Spencer got up. "Let's go." She skated off, hearing Aria hurrying after her.

* * *

><p>Emily's cheeks flushed. People were skating around them, probably staring, but she was too busy staring into Hanna's eyes to care. They were so <em>blue.<em> "S-sorry," she wheezed. Emily pushed herself up and pulled Hanna to her feet. "But...I caught you."

Hanna smirked. "I guess so. Wanna get some hot chocolate?"

"Yeah!" The girls skated off the ice and collapsed onto the nearest bench to take off their skates. "My feet hurt," Emily complained, massaging her left one with her hands. "My skates are a little too small."

Hanna frowned and lifted Emily's legs into her lap. "Silly. You should have told me before. We could have rented skates for you." She gently started to massage Emily's feet. "Does this feel better?"

"Y-yes," Emily whispered. "It tickles."

Hanna giggled. "Nice socks, Em." She held up one of Emily's legs to show off her Valentine's Day-themed socks. "It's not Valentine's Day yet, Ariel."

Emily rolled her eyes. "I was washing my other ones!"

"Uh-huh. Sure." Hanna continued to massage Emily's feet. People who skated or walked by shot them funny looks, but she didn't care. "My, grandma, what big feet you have!"

Emily gasped again. "Hey! What is this, insult Emily night?" She raised her foot to Hanna's face. "They smell, too. See?"

"Ew!" Hanna squealed, pushing her feet away. "Gross!"

"Smell them!" Emily laughed, sticking her feet in Hanna's face again. "You know you like the smell of my feet."

Hanna's nose scrunched up. "Not really, dear. That's gross!"

Emily smirked and pulled her legs back, standing up. She picked up hers and Hanna's skates. "Let's go, Barbie. I'm thirsty."

Hanna and Emily walked to the concession stand and stood in line. When they got up the counter, they ordered their hot chocolates and a plate of nachos to share. They carried their snacks over to a booth and fell into either side. Hanna's skates bounced off the seat and on to the floor with a loud clang. She brought the steaming paper cup to her lips and took a slow sip. "Wow, this is surprisingly good!"

"All hot chocolate is good, Han," Emily said, setting her own cup down. She picked up a nacho and extended her arm to Hanna. "Be a big girl and say 'ahhh'."

"Ahhh." Hanna smiled, taking the nacho from Emily.

"Good?"

Hanna nodded, swallowing. "Yeah! We'll have to come here more often." She fed Emily a chip, giggling. "This is a great _gourmet_ meal."

Emily chuckled. "Oh, yes, Miss Marin. I feel so classy."

"And sassy?"

"Yup. I'm a sassy, classy kind of girl." Emily's eyes shifted from Hanna to something behind her. "_Spencer_?" she gasped, bewildered.

Hanna twisted around. Sure enough, Spencer was sitting a few booths away, nursing a cup of hot chocolate. When Spencer heard her name, she looked up and her face immediately drained of its color. "What's she doing here?"

Emily lifted her shoulders in a half shrug. "Let's go find out." She got up and Hanna followed. "Hey, Spence!" Emily greeted with a grin. "What are you doing here?"

"Uh..." Spencer cleared her throat and said the first thing that popped into her head. "I'm on a date, too."

Hanna and Emily looked at each other, confused. "You are?" Hanna questioned. "I thought Wren was at some kind of medical convention or whatever for a while?"

Spencer licked her lips. _Shit_. She'd forgotten about that. "H-he is. I-I'm here with...Aria."

Emily's eyes almost popped out of her head. "You're on a _date_ with _Aria_?"

"Who's on a date with Aria?"

Hanna and Emily turned around to see Aria standing there holding a cup of hot chocolate and a plate with two hot dogs on it.

"Apparently Spencer is," Hanna said, nodding towards the two hot dogs. "When were you going to tell us? I'm so confused."

Aria's eyes shot to Spencer. "We're not on a date!" she exclaimed.

Emily crossed her arms. "That's not what Spencer just told us! To be honest, I think you guys make an adorable couple."

Aria's cheeks flushed. She didn't know whether to be flattered or embarrassed. "We're not on a date. In case you've forgotten, we're straight."

Spencer nodded. "Y-yeah," she croaked.

Hanna lifted her eyebrows. "Then why did you just lie, Spencer?" She twirled back around, hands on her hips. "Why are you really here?" The realization hit her suddenly. "You were _spying_ on us?"

"No!" Spencer cried at the same time Aria muttered a yes.

Spencer glared at Aria. "Aria," she hissed.

Emily scoffed. "Why the hell would you guys do that?"

"It was Spencer's idea!"

"Aria!" Spencer groaned.

Hanna glared at Spencer. "Care to explain?"

"I..I just wanted to see how your first date went."

Emily sighed. "You know we would have told you. I can't believe you two SPIED on us."

Aria fiddled with the paper plate. "I'm sorry.."

Spencer rose from her feet. "I'm sorry, too. Really."

Hanna sighed and grabbed Emily's hand. "Come on, love."

"Wait!" Aria called out after them. "We're sorry!"

"Screw off," Hanna snapped. "Now I know why Spencer called me earlier to ask where I was taking Emily."

Emily silently picked up their skates, swinging them back and forth. "Maybe we should let them explain," she said quietly.

"Explain what?" Hanna asked, throwing away their drinks and the plate of nachos. "Em, they spied on us. That's low."

"True..."

Hanna dusted off her hands and pulled Emily into her arms. "I'm sorry. I'm probably overreacting." She tucked a lock hair that escaped from Emily's hat behind her ear, purposely brushing her fingers down her cheek. "I just wanted this to be special, and the fact they had to spy on us.."

Emily's skin tingled from where Hanna had touched her. "We would have told them how it went. They didn't have to spy."

Hanna nodded. "Wanna go somewhere else?" She glanced at the spot where Spencer and Aria were, but the two girls were gone. _Good_, she thought. _They were probably embarrassed and left._ She looked back at Emily. "How about we get ice-" She was cut off by Emily pressing her lips to hers in a soft kiss. Surprised, Hanna slid her arms around Emily's waist and kissed back. She let her fingers get tangled into Emily's dark hair as she deepened their kiss. The laces Emily was holding slid through her fingers and the skates fell to the floor. Emily's hands slipped around Hanna's waist and she tugged the shorter girl closer.

All too soon, Emily broke away, breathing hard. Her blood was pulsing through her veins and her heart was beating a tattoo against her ribcage. She licked her lips, tasting Hanna's mango-flavored lipgloss on her tongue again. "D-damn, Hanna." Emily quickly gazed around. No one seemed to be staring at them. She exhaled, trying to relax. "You really know how to kiss."

Hanna grinned. "I could say the same about you, but then I'd be lying."

"Oh, really?" Emily reached down and picked up their skates. She calmly put them on and stood up, handing Hanna hers. "Close your eyes and count to twenty." When Hanna closed her eyes, Emily quickly slipped away.

"Okay.." Hanna counted to twenty and opened her eyes. "Hey!" Emily was on the ice. "CHEATER," she shouted. Laughing, she stuffed her feet into her skates, laced them up and scampered after Emily as steadily as she could. As soon as she got on the ice, it seemed like a ton of people came out of nowhere. The teenagers she saw earlier were still playing Crack the Whip. Couples were twirling around on the ice, pausing to kiss or hug. A small group of kids who looked to be around nine or ten were trying to trip each other. She didn't see Emily anywhere. She cautiously skated forward, eyes darting around in search of Emily. After a few moments of skating around, she broke through a gap of couples and saw Emily skating forward with her back to her. Grinning, she slowly unwrapped her scarf and tried her best to skate without being loud. When she was close enough, she held her scarf between both hands and skated past Emily, throwing the scarf around her neck and twirling around to face her. She smirked at Emily's surprised expression. "Where do you think _you're_ going?" Hanna asked, pulling on the ends of her scarf to force Emily toward her.

Emily crossed her arms, allowing herself to be pulled forward. "That's not fair."

"All's fair in love and war," Hanna teased, repeating what Emily had said to her earlier that morning. When Emily was close enough, Hanna replaced her scarf with her arms. "This time, _I_ caught _you._"

Emily slid her own arms around Hanna's neck, the scarf dangling between them. "You also caught my heart. So don't ever give it back."

"I wouldn't dream of it." Hanna slowed to a stop so Emily would bump into her. She carefully removed her scarf from around Emily's neck and re-wrapped it around hers. "I love you."

Emily brushed Hanna's hair out of her eyes. "I love you more."

Hanna giggled. "Oh, so we_ are_ one of those couples?"

Emily gently pushed Hanna backwards. "Sure, why not?"

Well, you can't love me more, because I love you more."

"Untrue."

"Very true!"

"No."

"Yes."

"I don't think so, Bluebird."

"I-" Hanna paused, nose scrunching up in confusion. "What?"

Emily removed a glove so she could comb her fingers through the ends of Hanna's silky blond hair. "Bluebird. You're my little bluebird because of your eyes."

Hanna's cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "Bluebird and Ariel? I like that."

Emily laughed, tugging on a lock of Hanna's hair. Something flashed across the blond's face, but in a second, it was gone. "Yeah! Those can be our stage names. We can sing as duet on _American Idol._ Sound good?"

"Sounds wonderful," Hanna murmured, pecking Emily on her lips. She caught side of the large, digital clock above the sign pointing to the bathrooms and sighed. "Do you want to get ice cream? If you do, we have to leave now. It's almost time for me to take you home."

Emily pouted. "Already? Why hasn't Spencer built a time machine?"

Hanna smirked. "She's too busy following us around. Maybe she's A," she joked.

Emily frowned. "Not funny, Han."

"Sorry," Hanna mumbled, looking down.

Emily titled Hanna's chin up and pecked her lips. "Want to get some ice cream?"

Yes!"

The girls skated off the ice and over to the lockers. Hanna removed the key from her pocket and jammed it in the keyhole, twisting it and opening their lockers. "Think fast!" She tossed Emily's shoes behind her. Emily easily caught both shoes and plopped down, exchanging her skates for her shoes. Hanna did the same and handed Emily her purse. Slamming the locker shut, she looped her arm through Emily's. "Ready?"

"Ready."

* * *

><p>"Want to try some?" Hanna asked, pointing to her boat-shaped container with her spoon.<p>

Hanna and Emily were at Rosewood's local ice cream. They were seated at a corner booth, hidden from the rest of the shop by three big plants. The interior of the ice cream was packed with arcade games. The red-and-white walls were plastered with posters with old-time celebrities like Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley. An old song from the Spice Girls filtered out from the speakers, and the place smelled like a mixture of milk, fruit, chocolate and about thirty different flavors of ice cream and toppings. Emily had a small banana spilt in front of her and Hanna had a hot fudge sundae, complete with whipped cream and cherries. "It's good!"

"Sure!"

Hanna scooped up some ice cream and held her arm out. Emily leaned forward and ate off Hanna's spoon.

"That's so good!"

"Right?" Hanna ate another bite, waving her spoon around. "How's yours?"

"Delicious!" Emily spooned some of her ice cream into Hanna's container. "Try it."

Hanna lumped the ice cream together on her spoon and brought to her mouth. "Yours is good, too! Wanna switch?"

Emily shook her head. "Sorry, Bluebird."

Hanna crossed her arms in a pout. She was about to respond when a devious idea popped in her head. "Want to see a trick?"

"I don't know what kind of trick you can do in an ice cream shop, but yeah, okay."

Hanna plucked a cherry off her sundae and popped it in her mouth. She held up a finger. After a few seconds, she pulled out the cherry stem and swallowed the cherry. Smirking, she held up the cherry stem that was tied into a knot. "Did you know that if you can do that, you're an _amazing_ kisser?"

Emily stared at Hanna. "Y-yes. But I already knew you were an amazing kisser." She quickly took a bite of ice cream to conceal her reddening cheeks. While Emily was eating, Hanna slid the cherry stem into her purse. "Are you ready to go?"

Emily nodded. "I just need to use the bathroom. Be right back." Emily slipped off the booth and headed to the bathroom. Wasting no time, Hanna leaned over the table and snatched up Emily's purse. Opening her own, she rifled through it until her hand closed around a small object. She dropped it into the inside pocket of Emily's purse and added a second item next to that one. Hanna then removed a small notepad from her purse and a pen. She hurriedly scribbled something onto a piece of paper, tore it off and added it to Emily's purse. Smiling, she zipped up both purses and put Emily's back just as Emily reappeared. "Okay, I'm ready."

Hanna stood and stretched. "All right, come on. If I don't get you home soon, your mom will send Jesus after me."

Emily smirked and followed Hanna out of the restaurant, climbing into her car. The ride back to Emily's was much too short and Emily soon found herself standing on her doorstep with Hanna. "I had a lot of fun."

"Really?" Hanna grinned.

Emily nodded. "Of course. I'd have fun with you if we hit a balloon back and forth and tried not to let it hit the floor."

"I used to play that all the time!"

"Me too!"

The two girls giggled and Hanna stepped closer. "This is was the best date of my life. You're amazing, Emily Fields."

Emily ducked her head, blushing. "I bet you say that to all the girls."

"Nope. Just you."

"Good." Emily leaned in at the same time Hanna did and their lips met in a soft, tender kiss. Emily quickly pulled away, sighing. "My mom might be watching."

"She didn't come rushing out with a cross and holy water, so I think we're safe."

Emily giggled. "I'll see you tomorrow in school? First thing?"

Hanna shook her head. "Nope."

"You're not going?" Emily frowned. What was she supposed to do without Hanna?

Hanna shook her head, smiling up at Emily. "I'm going, but I'll see you in my dreams first before I see you at school."

Emily beamed, pushing Hanna's shoulder. "You're so _romantic._"

_"I know."_ Hanna walked backwards off the porch slowly. "Bye," she whispered, waving.

"Bye," Emily whispered back, leaning against the door. After Hanna got in her car and drove away, Emily headed inside her house. "I'm home!" she announced, walking into the kitchen.

"How was your night?" Pam called from the living room.

"Fine!"_ The best night of my life._ Emily walked into the living room. "What did you do all night?"

Pam smiled at Emily from her spot on the couch. "Just cleaned up. Get to bed, okay?"

Emily nodded. "Night, Mom."

"Goodnight, dear."

Emily bounded up the stairs and into her room. She tossed her purse on her bed and set her skates down by her desk. Popping in her bathroom, she knelt down and opened the cabinet under the sink, removing a purple vase. She filled it with water and set it on the sink. Walking back into her room, she unzipped her purse and pulled out the flower. Smiling, she pressed it to her nose and inhaled the sweet aroma. "Hanna is so sweet." Emily sauntered back into her bathroom and gently placed the rose into the vase. There. Now she would see it every morning and night. After brushing her teeth, washing her face and changing into pajamas, Emily was ready to go to sleep. She sat down on her bed and grabbed her purse to get her phone. When she pulled it out, she noticed a white piece of paper wedged between her wallet and a few pieces of gum. Emily raised her dark eyebrows and removed the note, unfolding it.

_**Ariel, thank you for making this the best date I've ever had. I had an amazing time, and I'm so glad I can call you mine. I'll see you tomorrow, love. I love you. Xoxo -**** Hanna.**_

_**P.S. Check the inside pocket of your purse.**_

A goofy smile spread over Emily's lips. When had Hanna done this? Folding up the note, she placed it on her nightstand and sat back against her headboard. Emily peeked excitedly into the pocket in her purse. Smirking, she closed her fist around the small items and set her purse down on the floor. Shaking her head, she set the items down on her nightstand and plugged in her phone. The cherry stem and Hershey's chocolate kiss stood out from the various items on Emily's desk. Getting up, Emily turned out her light and got back into bed, snuggling under the covers. After a moment of lying in the dark, she grabbed her phone and pulled up Hanna's name. She quickly composed a text and sent it. The text Emily had sent Hanna was only four-words long:

_I love you more._

* * *

><p>So, what did you guys think? I had fun writing this chapter.<p>

=D Keep the reviews coming! I'll update as soon as I can. I hope everyone has a great holiday!

3


	10. A Deal with the Devil

Hey, guys! I am SO sorry it took me this long to update. School was absolutely insane this semester, but it's finally over and I can relax! Until I start my job that is, haha. Once again, all of you have been so great for sticking with this story. It means a lot to me to know that so many people like this! Anyway, I wrote this pretty quickly (as in last night and I finished it tonight), so if it seems rushed - that's because it was. I didn't want to keep you guys waiting any longer.

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>"I'm scared."<p>

"Aria, don't be ridiculous."

"Spencer." Aria peeked out from behind her friend, gazing out into the crowded cafeteria. It was the next morning, and Aria and Spencer were waiting for Hanna and Emily at their usual booth before school. "Hanna was _pissed_. I thought she was going to break the blade off her skate and come after us." She tugged on her chunky, coral-black, star-shaped necklace. "So, I'm scared."

"It would be more effective for Hanna to slice our veins open with the blade still attached to skate, because she would be able to press down on the skate, adding a heavier pressure and therefore, a deeper, more precise incision," Spencer murmured effortlessly as she sipped from her double chocolate latte.

"..Thanks."

"I'm just saying."

"Well!" Aria huffed and glanced up at her friend. "And I still can't believe you told them you were on a date with _me_!"

"I panicked!" Spencer shot back. "What was I supposed to say? 'Oh, hi Emily and Hanna, we're spying on you'?"

"You didn't have to tell them that we were on a date!" Aria grabbed Spencer's coffee cup and took a long sip from it.

"Hey!" Spencer squealed. "I didn't say you could have some!"

"Too bad. You didn't say I _couldn't_, either."

"That's a double negative."

"Bite me, Professor Hastings."

"Give it back!"

"No."

Spencer scowled and pounced on Aria, almost causing the smaller girl to almost drop the coffee cup. "Give it!"

Aria squirmed and held her arm up, tilting the cup out of Spencer's reach. Before she could move further away, however, Spencer pinned her against the booth they were in, trapping her free arm between her side and the booth. "Get off me!"

"Give it back first!" Spencer ordered, placing her knee on Aria's hand so she couldn't pull her arm away. She leaned closer to Aria, gently resting her arm against length the other's girl stomach while she tried to grab the coffee cup with the other. "Come on!" she grunted, after she made a few futile swipes.

"I said no!" Aria tried to lift her legs up to kick Spencer off her, but the brunette had her trapped - she was surprisingly strong for someone so skinny. "You get off me and then I'll give it back."

Spencer glared at Aria, crawled further up her body, and pushed herself up with her arm that was on Aria's stomach in an attempt to grab her coffee. At that moment, Aria shifted underneath her, and Spencer's arm gave away, sending Spencer crashing down, their lips connecting.

The coffee slipped out of Aria's gasp and smashed to the cafeteria floor, exploding on impact. But Aria was too shocked to react. Spencer's lips were..._soft_.

Spencer's stomach twisted in excited knots. What. The. Fuck. Aria's lips were smooth, and she tasted like mint toothpaste and cherry-flavored ChapStick. _A little cliche_, she couldn't help but think.

Then, at the same moment, both girls remembered _whom _it was they were kissing and _where_ they were. They reacted simultaneously-Aria shoved Spencer off her while Spencer jerked back with wide eyes.

"U-uh, uh. S-s-s-I-sorry," Spencer gasped incoherently. "I was just-I didn't mean. I -"

"I-it's f-fine," Aria wheezed, sitting up. "I...it's fine." Aria touched her still-tingling lips, then quickly yanked her hand away like she was caught doing something she shouldn't be doing. "D-did anyone s-see?"

Spencer swallowed and did a quick scan of the cafeteria. No one was pointing at them and whispering. Nor was anyone staring at them. "I-I don't think so." T_hank goodness._

Aria twirled her matching bracelet around her wrist faster and faster. "G-good. I-it's probably a good thing that no one s-saw."

"Saw what?" A familiar voice asked from behind them.

Aria and Spencer swiveled around to see Emily and Hanna standing there, hands linked.

"I, uh, tripped earlier," Aria squawked. "It was embarrassing..."

"But humorous," Spencer added, piling onto the lie. She glanced nervously at Aria. Her heart was pounding and she could _still_ feel Aria's lips against hers, even though their kiss was barely a kiss.

Hanna arched an eyebrow. "Aw, we missed it? Shoot!" She plopped down on the other side of the booth and pulled Emily down next to her. Unzipping her backpack, she pulled out a plastic-wrapped muffin and a bottle of strawberry milk. "So, how was your guys' date last night?" she teased as she freed the muffin from its wrapper and uncapped her milk.

"IT WAS NOT A DATE!" Aria shouted, without meaning to. Her eyes grew and she quickly looked down, mumbling, "It wasn't..."

Emily blinked, breaking off a portion of the banana-nut muffin and popping it into her mouth. "Jeez, she was only kidding. "What's with you?"

"N-nothing's _with_ me," Aria stammered. "I'm just tired, I guess."

Emily shrugged and tore off another piece of the muffin, holding it out for Hanna. "Here, Han."

"You didn't have to yell," Hanna said before carefully eating the chunk of muffin from between Emily's fingers. She grinned at Emily and pecked her cheek. "Thanks, Emmykins."

Emily blushed. "No problem, babe." When she looked up, Spencer was wringing her hands together and Aria was fidgeting with her bracelet. "Are you guys okay?" she asked worriedly.

"Fine." they replied in unison.

Spencer breathed in slowly, replaying her very short kiss with Aria in her mind. It hadn't meant anything. Spencer knew whom it was she liked - and that person was sitting across from her, feeding her _girlfriend_ a muffin. This time, Spencer's stomach bubbled over with jealously, not excitement and she rose to her feet, snatching up her heavy backpack easily. "Well, I have to go. I'm late for class." She scurried out of the cafeteria before her friends could say anything.

Hanna sipped from her bottle of milk. "What was that about?"

"W-who knows?" Aria mumbled, still playing with her bracelet. "She's Spencer."

"Right. Well, I guess we should all get to class, huh? Mr. Edwards will kill Hanna and I if we're late."

Hanna groaned. "Can't we skip his class? He's such a jerk."

Emily sighed. "We can't skip, Bluebird."

Aria raised her eyebrows. "_Bluebird_?"

A light blush tinted Hanna's cheeks. "It's my nickname Em gave me."

"Her eyes are so blue, they remind me of a Bluebird," Emily explained.

Aria grinned._ Aw._ "That's great!" she gushed, trying to sound cheerful, but she couldn't get Spencer's kiss out of her mind. W_hy did my skin tingle when Spencer kissed me? Why does it still feel like her lips are on mine? It was hardly a kiss. We didn't even kiss purposely. It was an accident. Not that I would want to k-_

"Aria!" Hanna snapped her fingers in Aria's face repeatedly. "Hello, Earth to Aria!"

Aria jumped violently, heart racing. "W-what?"

Hanna and Emily exchanged a look. "We have to go to class," Hanna said slowly. "Okay?"

Nodding weakly, Aria stood up and threw her bag over her left shoulder. "O-Okay," she whispered.

Hanna and Emily joined hands and the three made their way through the throng of students in the cafeteria, and into the sea of kids in the hall. As Aria walked behind her two friends, she kept lowering their gaze to their linked fingers. _Hanna and Emily are so brave. I wonder what would happen if I held Spencer's hand like that. Would she let me?_

The thought that crossed her mind was so sudden and unexpected that a strangled gasp escaped from the back of Aria's throat. S_top it! It wasn't even a kiss. It was, like, a peck. If even that. Stop it, stop it._ If it wasn't even a kiss, then why couldn't Aria stop thinking about it? The moment was over. It had passed and that's all there was to it. It was over and she could just move on and forget about it.

_Right?_

Somehow Aria didn't think so.

* * *

><p>"God, your hands work wonders," Emily murmured, leaning back into Hanna's touch.<p>

It was later that afternoon, and Hanna and Emily were relaxing in Hanna's living room. Ashley was still at work, so the girls had the house to themselves. Hanna was giving Emily a back rub, and every few seconds, Emily would sigh or gasp, causing Hanna's blood to rush through her veins. Hanna worked her hands into the muscles in Emily's shoulders and the back of her neck, smirking as she did so. "Mhm. I can tell by your sighs of pleasure."

Emily giggled and stretched out her legs in front of her. "I can't help it. You're really good with your hands."

Hanna pressed the heels of her palms against the pressure points in Emily's shoulders with a smug grin, and just as she expected, Emily groaned and subconsciously (or maybe purposely) shifted back into Hanna's arms and lap. Hanna buried her face into Emily's silky black hair. "Your hair smells so good," she murmured directly in her ear.

Emily's eyes fluttered shut as Hanna slipped her hands under the back of her top. "T-thanks." Hanna's fingers felt like butterfly wings against her bare skin- soft and gentle. The closer Hanna's nimble fingers got to the clasp of her bra, the more anxious Emily became. She held her breath, but Hanna paused, if only for a second, at the hooks of her girlfriend's bra, before dancing her fingers up the rest of the way to her shoulders. Emily didn't know whether to feel disappointed or relieved. They didn't want to move too fast, right? Before Emily could think about it any longer, she suddenly found herself on her back with Hanna on top of her, kissing her neck roughly. How had _that_ happened?

"H-Hanna, how did you-" Emily trailed off, tilting her head back to give her girlfriend better access to her neck.

"I'm full of surprises," Hanna whispered against the soft flesh of Emily's neck. She gently bit down on the skin, earning a sharp intake of breath from the girl beneath her. "Mhm, even your skin tastes good."

"Uuhm," Emily responded unintelligently. Her head swam as Hanna's mouth worked on her neck, while her hands, once again, disappeared under her shirt. This time, though, they were working their way dangerously close to her breasts. "D-don't tease me," she finally managed to say. "P-please."

Hanna's fingers traveled further up Emily's flawless stomach. Emily's skin felt butter-soft and Hanna wanted to touch every inch of it she could. Kissing across Emily's collarbone and up her jawline, Hanna took the lobe of Emily's left ear in-between her teeth and tugged on it. "Funny, all I heard was_ tease me,_" she droned in a husky tone, stopping the motion of her fingers just under Emily's bra.

"H-Hanna," Emily croaked. "Y-you're not playing f-fair." There was a familiar ache between her legs, and Emily desperately wanted to cure it.

Hanna climbed off Emily with a satisfied smile and wandered away from the living room and into her kitchen. "Sorry, Em," she called over her shoulder. "So, want a snack?"

Hanna didn't have to turn around to know that Emily was glowering at her.

_If scowls could kill._

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Spencer was sprawled out on her bed, surrounded by textbooks, folders and notes. She had been staring a few simple math problems she could have solved in under ten minutes, but her mind was elsewhere. On a certain tiny brunette, in fact.<p>

Aria. Besides being forced near her in their classes, Spencer had avoided Aria at all costs. At lunch, Spencer had hidden away in the library. She couldn't be near Aria just yet. And she also didn't want to watch Hanna and Emily being all cutesy-wutesy with each other._ Gag._

So the second the last bell had rung, Spencer had sprinted to her car without waiting for her friends. She knew she was probably going to get the third degree later, but she would cross that bridge when she came to it.

"Okay.." Spencer cleared her throat and tapped her pen against her notebook three times. "Time to get back to your homework, Spencer."

_One_

_two_

_three_

"Why did I kiss her? It was just an accident. I didn't even like it." She hadn't. _Had_ she?

_One_

_two_

_three_

"Of course you didn't, Spencer. Don't be ridiculous. Just focus on your math problems." But the problem she was staring at could have well just been a foreign language. She couldn't process the information at all. "Of course I didn't enjoy the kiss," she mumbled.

The tapping of her pen became faster. Quick, rhythmic beats.

_One, two, three_

_One, two, three_

_One, two, three_

"But did Aria?" Spencer wondered aloud.

_One, two three_

_One, two, three_

"There's no way she did." Spencer decided firmly. She couldn't have.

Finally, Spencer growled in frustration, chucked her pen across the room, shoved her school belongings off her bed and collapsed onto her comforter.

Why was life so difficult? Spencer was striving to be perfect, and she couldn't even get over a stupid crush she had on her best friend. Her best friend, whom, was dating another best friend of hers. "Just when I thought I've got this whole Emily thing figured out, I had to go and kiss Aria. Accidentally, but still.."

Wasn't talking to yourself a sign of insanity? Numero uno, Spencer thought.

**_Ding!_**

Spencer lifted her head up. _What was that?_

_**Ding!**_

Spencer sat up, now on full alert. It sounded like a doorbell, but who would be visiting her now? _Emily?_ Spencer scoffed immediately at the sudden thought_. No, she's with Hanna. Obviously._

_**Ding!**_

A sigh of relief escaped Spencer as she realized the sound was coming from her laptop. Swinging her legs over the side of her bed, she stood up and sauntered over to her desk. Plopping down, she quickly tapped on the mouse track of her keyboard, bringing the laptop back to life from hibernation mode. Spencer saw she had a new instant message. She had been signed into AIM all day? Oops.

Spencer squinted at the screen. The small preview slot of the message showed that the person's screen-name was just a few jumbled numbers and one letter. A sinking feeling gnawed at Spencer's stomach as she opened the chat window.

**_A8393029: Poor Spencer. Always lusting after those who are already taken._**

Spencer felt her mouth go dry. 'A'_ knew_? Of course 'A' did. Why did she expect any different? Taking a deep breath, Spencer scanned the next message the mysterious stalker had sent.

_**A8393029: I can get you what you want, Spencer. It'll be easy.**_

All of the air swept out of the room, and Spencer clutched the edge of her desk. _What?_ She chewed on her lower lip, eyes moving to the next and final message.

**_A8393029: I can give you Emily._**

Spencer had to reread the sentence several times before the words made any sense to her. 'A' was offering to _help_ her? No. No, that wasn't possible. The bitch lived to torture Spencer and her friends. This had to be some sort of trick.

But what if...

**_HarvardBound16: What do you mean?_**

Spencer typed back with trembling fingers. She sent the message before her conscience could kick in.

The reply came so quickly the brunette nearly fell of her chair when the computer alerted her. Spencer turned the sound off, staring hard at the black-and-white words on the screen.

_**A8393029: You know exactly what I mean. I can give you Emily. She can be all yours, Spencer. I can do it for you, but you're going to need to do something for me. You do want Emily, don't you?**_

_Yes_. Spencer shut her eyes. What was she doing? She should just close her laptop now, and forget that this had ever happened. She couldn't betray her friends. Spencer hesitantly opened her eyes.

**_A8393029: Want to make a deal?_**

_No, no, no. _She couldn't. She shouldn't.

But Spencer felt her fingers moving swiftly across the keyboard, like they were moving on their own accord.

**_HarvardBound16: Yes._**

Spencer typed in response, hitting enter before she could lose the nerve to do so. She sat back, eyes glued to the screen. What had she just _done_?

* * *

><p>There you guys go! Again, I apologize if it seemed quick. This chapter is shorter than my previous ones have been.<p>

Okay, you guys. If you were ever going to review, this is the chapter to do so. I am going to need you guys to answer a question for me: Would you guys like to (eventually) see Spencer and Aria get together? What do you think of this idea?

I already have this story planned out for either answer, but it depends on what your guys' answers will be, which direction the story will go in.

Please let me know. :)

P.S. Please check out the Spencer/Hanna (Spanna) story, _String Theory, _my friend and I are writing, which can be found on this account.

Thanks! 3


	11. And the Academy Goes To

I am so, so, so, SO SORRY. I apologize profusely for not updating in so long. Work has been hell and to be honest, I'm having trouble with this story as of late. Don't worry, I'm not abandoning it - I just had that pesky little thing called writer's block for this story.

But I'm back! I really hope you guys enjoy this chapter. And I hope you don't hate me _too _much.

* * *

><p>"God, Hanna, that feels so <em>good<em>." It was the next evening, and Hanna and Emily were on Hanna's bed, an entanglement of limbs and blond hair mixing with raven-black. Ashley had gone out to dinner with a business client and would later attend a cocktail party, which meant the girls would be all alone for the next few hours. Emily had tried studying for an upcoming history quiz, but Hanna had other ideas. Ideas that involved sucking Emily's neck and touching her everywhere but the one place she longed to be touched the most. School had flown by in a blur. Aria and Spencer had acted odd all day, but neither of them wanted to talk about whatever was bothering them. Spencer seemed especially on edge. She'd missed every question asked by her teachers, kept checking her phone throughout the day, and when the girls saw Spencer that morning, she was shaking uncontrollably. Her friends were worried, but didn't want to press the issue just yet. Spencer would talk to them when she was ready.

Hanna slowly slipped her fingers under Emily's navy-colored tank top. "We're home alone for the next few hours, baby," she mumbled against her neck. "We can do _anything._" Her delicate hands inched further up Emily's top.

"A-Anything," Emily repeated robotically. Hanna snickered and daringly cupped Emily's breasts through her bra. Emily let out a strangled whine and kicked her legs. "Hanna, _please._." But Hanna loved to tease. She silently pressed her lips to her girlfriend's while palming her breasts through her bra. The little groans Emily made drove Hanna insane.

"Just touch them," Emily pleaded.

Hanna swallowed. It would be okay if she just _touched_ Emily's breasts, right? They hadn't been dating long, but they both loved each other very much and already had such a strong, emotional connection, after everything they'd been through. Hanna figured they were ready for second base. It didn't mean she was going to hit a home run. Nodding, Hanna very slowly slid her hands under Emily's bra and gasped. Emily's breasts were large and full. They felt warm in her hands and Hanna couldn't stop herself from giving them a gentle squeeze. Emily moaned loudly and arched her back, pressing her chest against Hanna's hands. Her head felt dizzy and her nerves tingled.

"A-again."

Just as Hanna was about to give Emily's breasts another squeeze, the door to Hanna's room flew open.

"Hey, do you guys-whoa!"

Hanna leapt off Emily, springing to other side of the bed. Aria and Spencer were both standing in Hanna's doorway. Aria bore a mixed expression of embarrassment and amusement. Spencer, like she had all day, just looked tired and pissed. "Look Em, it's Rosewood's very own heroines: Analytical Andy and her faithful companion, Jailbait Judy, back from yet another adventure of alphabetizing cereal boxes and fraternizing with our English teacher." Hanna smirked and nudged Emily with her foot.

Emily sat up, cheeks a bright red. She smoothed out her shirt, and adverted her gaze to Hanna's bedspread. "U-uh..." _This is embarrassing. _

Aria cleared her throat. "Sorry," she apologized sheepishly. "We were, uh, just wondering if you two wanted to go shopping with us. It's Friday, so -"

"-So get your asses out of bed and come with us," Spencer interrupted. sitting down in Hanna's desk chair and crossing her legs. Her pale skin looked almost ghostly white, and instead of sitting straight up in her seat, she slumped down a little. "Oh, and I don't alphabetize my cereal boxes. I switched the categorizing them by fiber content," she grumbled.

Aria had to smile. _Such a Spencer thing to do. _"And I wasn't _fraternizing _with Ezra," she added. "But I am seeing him later tonight."

Spencer glanced at Aria, a bit surprised. "You _are? _You didn't say anything before about it." _Why do I even care? Aria can do whatever she wants. She's a big girl. _Spencer watched as Aria tugged on her multicolored piano tie. _Only Aria could look cute in a piano tie. _Spencer's eyes widened as the thought crossed her mind. What was _with _her lately? Having a crush on Emily, whom was already in a relationship, thinking of Aria as _cute _and worst of all, making a deal with the sinister text-messenger, A. Spencer could hardly stand to look at herself in the mirror this morning.

"Spencer!"

Spencer's head snapped up. Everyone was staring at her. "W-what?"

Aria raised her eyebrows. "We're leaving. Are you ready?"

"Oh, uh, sure. Let's go shop 'till we drop!"

"Wait!" Hanna cried. "Don't you and Aria have to save the world from stupid people and bad art?"

Emily giggled. Aria scowled, but shot Hanna a grin. Even Spencer cracked a smile. "That's not until later. Can we go now?"

* * *

><p>"Are you kidding? That would look <em>fabulous <em>on you, babe."

Hanna, Emily, Spencer and Aria were in Forever 21 at the Rosewood Mall. They had been shopping for the past hour, and Hanna had more bags at her feet than Spencer, Emily and Aria combined. Hanna and Emily were on one side of the store, right near the dressing rooms, gazing into one of the store's full-length mirrors. inspecting the red and white-striped top Emily held up to her chest. Spencer and Aria were on the other side of the store, browsing for jeans and sipping smoothies from Surf Shack.

"I don't know," Emily murmured, cocking her head to the side. "It's kind..girly-girly. I think it would look better on _you." _

Hanna stepped closer to Emily, sliding her arms around her waist from behind. She gazed at their reflections in the mirror. With Emily's tan skin, long black hair, almond-shaped eyes and Hanna's own pale complexion, blond hair and blue eyes, it was easy to see why all of their peers thought they looked hot together. They were both gorgeous girls on their own, but together they looked like the perfect couple. And they felt like it, too. "Mhm, I think you would look better wearing _nothing at all," _Hanna whispered into her ear. "But I think we should test that out, don't you think?" She nodded toward the dressing rooms and cracked a suggestive smile.

Chills shot down Emily's spine. Her grip tightened on the shirt and she lowered her arm to her side. "Are you _nuts? _We can't...we haven't even..not here!"

Hanna's lips twitched into a smirk and without warning, she yanked Emily into the nearest dressing room with surprising strength, causing the both of them to drop everything in their hands. The dressing room was small, with a large mirror, a few hooks on the wall and a bench. "Cozy in here, huh?"

"Hanna!" Emily hissed. "You can't just ambush me like that!" She started for the door, but Hanna lightly grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. Emily crossed her arms, glaring steadily at her girlfriend. "Don't you even dare think-"

**_Slam!_**

Emily's back collided with the wall behind her. She didn't even time to register any pain because Hanna's lips were on hers, soft and smooth, making her forget what her own hair color even was. Did Hanna know? Did she know the strong effect she had on Emily? Emily melted into the kiss, immediately locking her arms around Hanna's thin waist. "You're so naughty."

Hanna grinned against Emily's lips. Emily tasted like coconuts and the tropical-flavored gum she'd been chewing earlier. "It's not my fault I can't keep my hands off you." She guided them over to the bench and sat down, yanking Emily into her lap. Their kiss turned more heated and Hanna soon found her hands Emily's top. Her fingertips lightly danced teasingly around Emily's belly button as she nibbled on her lower lip. Their tongues battled for control, and when Emily tugged hard on a lock of Hanna's blond hair, she had to stop herself from moaning. Having her hair pulled was one of Hanna's turn-ons. And Emily knew it.

"I love you so much, Hanna." Emily groused, threading her fingers through Hanna's silky locks. "So, so much."

Hanna pulled back enough so she could stare into Emily's dark eyes. They were clouded over with list and Emily was panting. "Guess what?"

"What?" Emily smiled.

Hanna interlaced their fingers together, giving Emily's hand a firm squeeze. "I love you, too. I will always love you."

"Is that a promise?"

Hanna silently pressed her lips to Emily's in leu of an answer.

* * *

><p>"Aria, we have to talk about...you know."<p>

Aria picked a pair of boyfriend jeans and helped them out for Spencer to see. "What do you think?" she asked, completely ignoring what Spencer had just said. There was _no way _she was talking about their kind-of-but-not-really kiss. Wouldn't it be best if they just pretended it never happened? "Or what about these jeans?" Aria snagged a pair of low-cut jeans off a rack and grinned. "I should get these, right?"

"_Aria," _Spencer sighed. "We are _going _to talk about what happened." Reaching out, she snatched their pairs of jeans from Aria's hands, accidentally brushing their fingers together. Aria jumped back instantly, like Spencer had just spit on her.

Spencer froze. Maybe here tired eyes were playing tricks on her, but she could have sworn Aria just blushed. "I-"

**_Ping!_**

Spencer's jaw went slack and the jeans slipped out of her grasp, crumpling at a heap by their feet.

Aria swallowed. The hairs on her arms stood up and she subconsciously glanced around the store. "You should.."

"It's probably not even-"

"It could be your mom-"

"Or Melissa.." Spencer suggested weakly.

**_Ping!_**

Spencer sighed and slowly retrieved her phone from the bottom of her purse. She had a new text message, from of course - Anonymous.

Tilting the phone's screen away from Aria, Spencer clicked READ.

_Show time, Spence. -A_

That's all. No pictures. No explanations. Just three little words. And yet, Spencer knew _exactly _what she had to do. In order to get what she so desperately wanted, she had to hurt one of her very best friends. But could Spencer _really _hurt Hanna?

**_Ping!_**

Spencer glanced uneasily down at her phone. Another message had come in. She quickly tapped it open.

_You know what will happen if you back out. - A_

Spencer resisted the urge to throw her phone against the wall. Apparently 'A' was Slyvia Browne. There, case closed.

"Spencer, are you okay?" Worry lines creased Aria's forehead.

Spencer nodded numbly, scrambling to pick up the jeans. She stuffed them into Aria's arms. "Buy them both. You look hot in anything," she garbled before dashing over to where she last saw Emily and Hanna. Spencer was too amped up to realize she just called Aria hot.

But Aria certainly caught it.

* * *

><p>"Emily? Hanna?"<p>

The area where Emily and Hanna once stood was now deserted, save for the dozens of shopping bags scattered on the floor. Spencer looked around, perplexed. "Guys?"

She took a step closer to the dressing rooms and heard faint giggling. Oh, _naturally. _Of course they'd be in there. Spencer wanted to barge right into the dressing room, but...she had a job to do. A horrible job of betrayal, but Spencer was too afraid of what A would do if she disobeyed her. What choice did she have?

Spencer hesitantly picked up Hanna's pink and black Prada bag. Geez, what did Hanna keep in this thing? It weighed more than all of Spencer's textbooks. Spencer's eyes darted around as she walked over to a display of earrings and sunglasses. No one was watching her. No one that she could see, anyway. So where was A?

Taking a deep breath, Spencer dropped a pair of white sunglasses and strawberry-shaped earrings into Hanna's bag before she lost her nerve. Her heart slammed against her ribcage as she scampered back over to the bags. She replaced Hanna's bag in the exact same spot she found it and stood up, taking a step back.

"There you are!"

Spencer screamed and whirled around, a hand flying to her chest.

Aria stood there with shopping bags from Forever 21 and a startled expression on her face. "Geez, sorry. Why are you so jumpy?"

Spencer's mouth felt stuffed with cotton balls. She opened her mouth to reply, but nothing came out.

"..Spencer?"

Just then, a banging sound was heard as Hanna and Emily tumbled out from inside the dressing room. Their faces were flushed, Hanna had a few buttons undone on her shirt, and Emily's hair was a little askew.

Aria raised her eyebrows. "Have fun, ladies?"

Hanna winked at Aria and scooped up Emily's bags, handing them over to her. "Of course," she said, snatching her own bags off the floor.

Aria shook her head, amused. "I can't believe you guys just made out in a dressing room."

"Emily dragged me in there, I was defenseless!"

"Hanna!" Emily gasped. "You know you were the one who-"

"Okay!" Spencer chirped in a loud, squeaky voice. "C-can we just go? I have...homework."

Emily blinked at Spencer. "Uh, okay..."

The girls headed to front entrance of the store. As they neared the theft detectors, Spencer started to feel more and more nauseated. Aria passed through the detectors. Then Emily.

Then...

"Hanna, wait!"

But it was too late. The second Hanna stepped into the detectors, a dozen or so flashing red lights and alarms went off.

Emily and Aria whipped around, both wearing identical shocked expressions. Before Hanna could even move, security guards and store employees had surrounded her.

Spencer shrank back, heart beating a tattoo against her chest. Her palms felt sweaty and there was a loud ringing in her ears. She could barely hear Hanna's cries of _I didn't do anything! _and _No, I don't know how those got into my bag! _over the loud, continuos bell-like sound vibrating her eardrums.

And just like that - it was over. Hanna was being hauled off to security with Emily running behind them. Her mouth was moving rapidly, and Spencer was sure she was trying to claim that Hanna was innocent.

_She is, she is, she is! _Spencer wanted to scream. She was only numbly aware that she was moving when she started to trip over her own feet. And then she realized - Aria was dragging her after their friends. Aria's mouth worked in fast circles, but Spencer couldn't tell what she was saying.

She also couldn't tell that her skin was tingling from where Aria was touching her.

But Spencer _did _hear the loud **_ping! _**from her bag. The simple alert tone sounded louder than any explosive and by the time everyone had reached the security office, Spencer was certain she'd gone deaf, for she could only hear the repeated sound in her ears.

Spencer broke away from Aria's hold and scurried over to a corner and peeked at her phone's screen.

_Anonymous._

Who was she expecting, Charlie Sheen, offering her bags of tiger blood?

Spencer tapped message.

_Good girl, Spencer. I guess Hefty got more than she bargained for, huh? Maybe you should be my accomplice since you're one who can so easily stab someone in the back. Since you followed my rules so nicely, I'll give you what I promised. - A_

Spencer swallowed the lump in her throat and glanced up. A few feet away, Hanna, Emily and Aria were all arguing with the mall police.

Another bleep from Spencer's phone caused her head to go snapping back down, her fingers automatically opening the text message.

_P.S. Do you want Emily gift-wrapped? - A_

* * *

><p>And so ends another chapter.<p>

Please don't be mad for what I had Spencer do. I promise Spencer will set things right, eventually. The poor girl is just way too confused and stressed. Being a Hastings would drive anyone nuts. ;)

As always, please review. I can't thank you guys enough for keeping up with this story. All of you have been so supportive and I love each and every one of you. Even if that sounds creepy, hahaha.

And for those of you wondering - yes, Team Sparia will get together in this story. Hanily and Sparia, what more could you want?

Until next time, my lovelies. 3


	12. Guilty Until Proven Innocent

Oh my God, you guys. I am SO freakin' sorry I'm just updating now. I know it's been months and that you guys have been waiting, and I apologize so much for that. It's been hard with school and work. And then of course I get new ideas for other fics, and I have to write about them. To be perfectly honest, I've been going back and forth between ideas for what exactly I want to happen with this story. Yes, it will be Hemily and Sparia, but I've been thinking of adding in some...fun into the mix before the girls realize whom they're destined for. Once again, I am so sorry and I hope you guys enjoy this chapter.

On another note, some of you may have noticed that I've taken down _Unhinged. _I was planning on finishing it after I updated this story, but I just didn't feel right about it after what happened in Connecticut. I may decide to bring it back later on, but for now I won't write it unless you guys _**really**_want me to.

Enough of my rambling - read on!

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you would do this again, Hanna!"<p>

"Mom, I didn't do it!"

"Hanna, the earrings and sunglasses were in your purse and security caught you with them. Don't you dare lie to me."

"I'm not lying to you!" Hanna protested. "It. Wasn't. Me."

Ashley Marin and her daughter were in one of the mall security's tiny 'interrogation' rooms, which was really just an old bathroom with the toilet and sink removed. There was a plastic table in the middle of the room and two chairs. Hanna occupied one while Ashley sat in the other. Ashley had been called to pick up her daughter after Hanna had refused to admit to stealing the items found in her purse. For the past hour, Ashley had been trying to get Hanna to confess to the theft, but her daughter was stubborn and dead-set against claiming her innocence.

"Then how do you explain the earrings and sunglasses?"

Hanna gnawed on her bottom lip, unsure of what to say. "I..I don't know, but-"

"Hanna. Admit to me that you stole them. The managers of Forever 21 agreed not to press charges as long as you admit to it and promise to pay for what you stole. And you won't be allowed to set foot in there again."

Hanna scoffed. "That's bullshit! I didn't _do _anything!"

"Hanna!" Ashley snapped. "Watch your language." She pressed a hand to her forehead with a sigh of irritation. Didn't Hanna understand how important this was? "This has gone on long enough. If you didn't do it, who did?"

Hanna rolled her eyes. "How am I suppo-"

Then it hit her: A.

_Of course. _That bitch would do something like this. In fact, this was _exactly _what they would do, but why?

Hanna lowered her gaze to the table. She couldn't tell her mom about 'A' without revealing the truth about _everything, _and...she couldn't do that. Her mom was going to be so disappointed in her for something she didn't do. And she wouldn't be able to go back to one of her favorite stores. She'd have to pay for items she _didn't _take, but what other choice did she have?

"All right," she whispered. "I did it."

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Emily, Aria and Spencer were sitting in the minuscule waiting room in the security office. There were a bunch of anti-violence and anti-crime posters plastered to the walls. Two security guards were hunched over the front desk, and the girls were trying to listen to their conversation.<p>

"-It's just gone."

"-How can a security tape disappear from the store? What about the basement?"

"-The footage room is down for repairs, remember? We only have the cameras in the actual stores to go by, and it wasn't there."

"-Well, it has to be somewhere."

Emily perked up. Were they talking about the video from Forever 21? That meant...well, it was good and bad, right? It was a good thing because there wasn't any actual recorded evidence that Hanna had stolen anything - which she didn't- but then again, there also wasn't proof that she was innocent - which she was. Without the video, it was going to be a hell of a lot harder to prove the latter, especially since Hanna had the items in her purse.

"I don't know how this happened," Emily whispered to Aria. "Hanna was with me the whole time. She didn't take anything."

"I know," Aria murmured back. "She wouldn't risk getting in trouble for a crappy pair of sunglasses and fake earrings."

While Emily and Aria were busy talking, Spencer was trying not to chew a hole through her lip. What had she done? She had betrayed one of her best friends. So she could have one of her _other _best friends. And just a day or so ago, or however long ago it was - she'd kissed the third best friend. Jesus, her life was spinning out of control faster than a coked-out Lindsay Lohan's.

"Spencer?"

Spencer jumped, her head snapping to her right. "W-what?"

Aria frowned. Spencer looked a little sick. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Spencer answered automatically. "I'm just worried about Hanna." _At least that wasn't a lie._

"Me too. I hope Hanna's going to be okay."

As if saying her name had summoned her, the door to the interrogation room opened, and Hanna and Ashley stepped out. Ashley looked like she was on the verge of tears as she moved quietly to speak to the security officers, and Hanna looked like she wanted to punch a wall. Her lips were pressed into a thin line as she dropped down next to Emily.

"Han?"

Hanna sat straight up in her chair, eyes fixated on a poster across the room. "I confessed."

"What?" Aria and Emily gasped in unison. Spencer almost fell out of her chair. Hanna had...confessed?

"I had to. 'A' obviously set me up. I don't know why, but I couldn't say I was framed without mentioning that cun-"

"Hanna!" Emily hissed.

"-bitch, and that would mean spilling the beans about everything. So now that I've confessed, I have to pay for everything and I'm banned from the store. One of my favorite fucking stores, and I can't go back." Hanna's voice had an edge to it, and Emily wrapped her arms tightly around her girlfriend's shoulders.

"Aw, honey, I'm sorry. I'm sorry 'A' did this to you."

"We'll fix this, Han," Aria encouraged. "We can totally fix this."

Spencer was too busy clenching her teeth together and breathing out of her nose to add to the conversation. Her mind was racing a mile a minute. _Confessed. Hanna had to suffer consequences for something she didn't do. _

"-I just hope my mom doesn't really send me to military school."

Spencer's eyes flew open and her head whipped toward her friends. "_What?" _she choked out. "You're not going to military school!"

"Spencer, you know what my mom said. She said if I got into trouble one more time, that I'd be shipped off to military school. By this time next week, I could be donning a military uniform and trying to tunnel my way out like in that movie."

"No, I'm not going to let you get sent to military school, Hanna. You didn't even do anything," Emily interjected.

"Hanna?" Ashley suddenly appeared in front of them. There were worry lines in her forehead and she looked angry. "Let's go."

"But Mom!"

"_Hanna. _Now." Ashely's voice was sharp, making all three girls flinch.

Hanna scowled and quickly pecked Emily on the cheek before standing up. "See you guys later."

Spencer watched as Hanna followed her mother out of the office, her demeanor akin to a kicked puppy. There was a horrible coil in Spencer's stomach that kept tightening. She did this to her. Spencer stabbed her best friend in the back with an axe.

"I-I have to go." Spencer shot to her feet. She could still hear those damn bells in her head and Hanna's panicked face when she was nabbed be security flashed in her mind every two seconds. Oh, God. What in the world had she done? What was _wrong _with her?

"Where are you going?" Emily called out after her.

"I have to make vocabulary flashcards in Latin."

Aria arched her eyebrows. "You don't take Latin. You take French."

"It's just for fun," Spencer deadpanned. She had to get out of there, right now. "See you guys tomorrow." Spencer had only take three steps when Emily's voice stopped her.

"Wait!"

Spencer sighed and turned around. "Yeah?"

Emily rose to her feet. There was a flicker of a smile on Emily's face, and Spencer's own lips threatened to tug into a grin.

"I was going to study with Hanna for our French test we have soon, but obviously _that's _not going to happen. Will you help me study?"

Spencer froze. Uh. Emily wanted Spencer to help her study? Okay, usually that wasn't a big deal. Spencer helped her friends study all the time. Except...this time, it would be different. Spencer would be alone with Emily. Her parents and Melissa were out for the night. "O-Okay.."

Emily beamed. "Great! I'll be at your house later, then."

Spencer forced a smile. "Sounds good, Em. Can't wait." Shit.

* * *

><p>Later that night, Hanna and her mother were seated at their kitchen table, having dinner. The tension between them was thick with another mother-daughter standoff. When Hanna had gotten home, she'd locked herself into her bedroom and had refused to come out for anything, up until Ashley had threatened her with the act of taking her phone away unless Hanna came down to dinner. So Hanna had stomped the stairs, making sure to be as loud as possible. They had been eating for twenty minutes already, but the headstrong blonde had barely touched her food.<p>

"Hanna.."

Hanna pushed her corn around on her plate. "What?"

"We have to talk about this. Why did you do it? I thought that part of your life was behind you."

Hanna remained silent and only shrugged. There wasn't much else she _could _do. She'd already paid for the things she didn't steal, and her picture was taken and tacked up in Forever 21. Now everyone would know that Hanna Marin was an alleged thief. "Can I be excused?"

"No."

Hanna grumbled.

"Hanna, I talked with your father while you were in your room earlier."

Hanna tensed. _Oh. _"And...?"

For the first time that night, Ashley bore a pitiful expression. "Hanna.." Her voice was soft, almost gentle and Hanna knew what was coming.

"No, Mom! Mom, please. Please. Don't." She cupped her hands together, her eyes brimming with tears. "_Please."_

Ashley exhaled. "Honey, I'm sorry. But your father and I decided this would be in your best interest. You're going next week."

Hanna was on her feet in seconds. "I can't believe you're sending me to God's Hellhole! And why did you have to talk to dad about me? He isn't even in our lives"!

"Hanna!" Ashley snapped. "Don't talk like that!"

"He isn't!" Hanna shot back. "He left us for America's Next Top Pornstar and her coke-addicted birth-giver."

"Hanna, stop it."

"It's true! He would rather be with Slut One and Two than with us, and _you're _siding with him! You're supposed to be on my side!" Hanna was close to crying by now. She couldn't believe it. She was going to military school.

"Hanna, calm down. You're only going for a week."

"They'll make me cut my hair!" Hanna wailed. "And I'll have to wear those ugly-ass uniforms. I'll look like a hotter version of those women on _Army Wives."_

"You're not _going _to the army. It's just a week of military school to straighten you out."

"I'm pretty sure I can't be 'straightened out' since I've had my tongue down Emily's throat all week."

"Hanna Marin!"

"I have!"

"Hanna, please. Please calm down. Sit down and we'll talk about this."

Hanna snorted. "I'm sure you'd rather talk with dad. I'm going to bed." She turned around and ran up the stairs. A second later, she slammed her bedroom door so hard the whole house shook.

Ashley pressed her face into her hands. She hated doing this to her daughter, but it was the only way Hanna would learn. It was going to be a long week.

* * *

><p>Spencer had never really been much of a drinker. That is, she only drank on special occasions with her family and even then, it was only half a glass of whatever they were being served that night.<p>

In the back of her mind, she'd known she should have stopped at one glass of whiskey. But then she decided that one more couldn't hurt. One glass had calmed and helped ease her anxiety about Emily coming over. What would one more glass do?

But one glass had turned into two and two had turned into three. And by the time Emily rung her doorbell, everything was fuzzy and Spencer was a ball of happiness. She peeled herself off the couch where her textbooks were and tried her best to make her way to the door. When she flung it open, there was Emily, standing there in all her beauty and glory. Even though Spencer was starting to see double.

"Emily!"

"Hey, Spencer!" Emily greeted, slipping past her and kicking off her shoes.

"You're pretty," Spencer slurred, shutting the door after several failed attempts.

Emily froze. Okay...? On the coffee table, there was an empty bottle of whiskey and a glass. Frowning, Emily turned back to her friend.

"Are you okay?"

Spencer sniggered, walking forward clumsily and heading to the couch. "I'm...I'm just so great, Emily. I'm great at everything, remember?" She fell on the couch and pulled her knees up to her chest. "It's actually kind of a curse, to be excel at everything you do. Nothing...nothing is challenging."

Emily hesitantly sat down. Why was Spencer drunk? Spencer hardly ever drank. She liked being sober. Spencer was always one to have her wits about her. "Uh-huh.."

"And you know me, I have to be challenged. But it doesn't work, Emily!" Spencer turned her head to gaze at her friend. The room was spinning and Emily looked blotchy. "But-but that's what I used to think. But you changed that."

Emily shifted, feeling a little uncomfortable. Maybe she should just put Spencer to bed and go home. "I did..?"

Spencer nodded, sliding closer to the girl next to her. "Mm, you did." Her hand shot out and Spencer brushed a runaway strand of Emily's hair off her face. "You..challenged me. You're so fucking driven and God, it's so...hot. S-So I had to h-have you."

Emily almost swallowed her tongue. _What _did Spencer just say? "S-Spencer?"

Spencer crawled into Emily's lap, wrapping her arms around her neck. She laughed, and although her breath reeked of whiskey, Emily found Spencer's laugh...a little cute. "That's my name, don't wear it out." Spencer traced Emily's jawline with her finger and Emily couldn't stop the shiver that slithered through her.

No. No, no, no. This couldn't...no.

"My name sounds amazing rolling off your tongue, Em," Spencer practically purred in her ear. "But I bet it'd sound even better if you were screaming it."

Emily shuddered. No. This was not going to happen. Not now, not ever. "Spencer," Emily gasped. "S-stop it. Y-ou're drunk."

"I'm _snockered," _Spencer replied with a chuckle. "Smashed. Pissed. Ah, the Brits have such lovely lingo. Wren taught me."

Emily eased Spencer off of her and climbed to her feet. Her chest was burning and her stomach was fluttering with the sudden onset of butterflies - a feeling Emily did _not _want. "Spencer, we'll do this another time. You're drunk, I'm going to go home, okay? I'll have Aria come over to watch you."

Spencer slowly rose to her feet and snaked her arms around Emily's waist. Her head was starting to feel packed with sand, but she'd never felt more calm. "Aria," she repeated thoughtfully. "She's like a pixie."

Emily tried to once again to free herself from Spencer's grasp, but even while drunk, the brunette was strong. "Y-Yes. Aria is great."

"And a pixie," Spencer said again.

"Right.."

Spencer managed to pull Emily back down on the couch and once again, set herself in the swimmer's lap, but this time in a straddling position. "We kissed, you know."

Emily rolled her jaw around. "..What? You and Aria?" Her heart was pounding so hard in her chest Emily was sure it would explode.

"Mm, but it was an accident." Spencer's fingers barely grazed Emily's collarbone. "I think she liked it."

Emily shut her eyes, trying to process everything that was happened. There was an uncomfortable feeling akin to...jealously in her stomach and it made her sick. "W-when?"

"I 'unno. A while ago? It was only for a few seconds, but goddamn, her lips are soft."

"T-that's nice," Emily croaked. Spencer was...God, what was Spencer _doing? _

"Have you had sex with Hanna?"

Emily gasped. "Spencer! That's not your business!"

Spencer snickered. "I think if I were her, I would already know by now what makes your toes curl. And Hanna's hot, too. All of my friends are."

Emily's cheeks reddened. "Spencer, stop it. I'm going to take you to bed, okay?" As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Emily regretted them.

Spencer's glassy eyes lit up, her face breaking out into an amused smirk. "Already? Well, I won't stop you..."

"No, Spencer! That's not what I meant!" Emily tried to force Spencer off her, but it was hard with Spencer straddling her, and Emily didn't want to accidentally hurt her friend by pushing her too hard and Spencer stumbling. "Get off me, okay? Up you go."

Just then, Emily's phone burst into a loud melody and Emily had to to knock Spencer's arm away so she could pull it out of her pocket.

**_Bluebird_**

Hanna's smiling face flashed up at her. _Shit._ Emily pushed Spencer somewhat away and answered her phone. "H-Hey, baby!" Emily greeted, trying to sound normal.

"E-Emily.."

Emily's eyebrows knitted together. Hanna sounded like she'd been crying. "Hanna? Baby, what's wrong?"

Spencer's lips found Emily's ear. "_Hanna," _she mocked baby. "_Baby, what's wrong?"_

Emily's whole body tensed up and she gripped her phone tightly. "Spencer, stop!" she hissed quietly, holding the phone away from her.

"My m-mom is-" Hanna's voice sounded strangled on the other end and, as Spencer slipped her arms around Emily's chest and gently scraped her teeth over Emily's ear, Emily nearly cried out into the phone.

"-W-w-what, Han? What is she doing?"

Spencer smirked. "_What, Han? What is she doing?" _Her fingers traveled down the back of Emily's neck and Spencer pressed herself even closer against Emily. "I can be way more fun than the Barbie doll, you know.."

Emily's blood pulsated through her veins and she squeezed her eyes shut tight. On Hanna's end of the phone, she was sniffling and trying to get out what she wanted to say. But Emily was so focused on trying to get Spencer to stop that she missed half of Hanna's explanation.

"-next week!" Hanna sobbed from the other end.

Emily swallowed hard. Spencer's fingers were playing with her hair, her breath warm against her neck. "W-what's next week?"

"Emily!" Hanna finally snapped. "Are you even listening to me? My mom is -"

Spencer suddenly snatched the phone out of Emily's hands, hung up and threw it behind her. "Enough of that."

"Spencer!" Emily cried. "Hanna was trying to talk to me! Get off me, right now!"

"I can do something with my mouth too, wanna see?"

"No."

"Too bad."

And then it happened: Spencer grabbed Emily's face in her hands and kissed her.

* * *

><p>I know, I know.<p>

I'm awful for making you guys wait this long and then leaving you with a cliffhanger like this. BUT THERE YOU GO. Spencer kissed Emily. Hanna's going to military school for a while, which means Spencer will be all alone with Emily.

I wonder how Aria will like this. And Hanna may or may not be rooming with a somebody she knows..

;) Bye, guys! I'll try to update faster. Next up: _A Little Thing Called Love._

**_PLEASE LEAVE ME FEEDBACK._**

Oh, yeah! I'm almost forgot: for those of you who have read _A Tout le Monde, _I'm planning on writing either a "sequel" or a prequel to it. I can't really say what they're about because I'll ruin the actual story for other people, but if you're interested in either, shoot me a message and I'll tell you the plot of each, and then I'll take a vote on which one I'll write.

Thanks, guys!


	13. Revelation

Hi guys! I'm sorry for the long wait in-between updates. I can't believe how long I've been working on this story for! It's literally been years. But you guys still enjoy it and that make me happy. :)

Unfortunately, this chapter isn't as drama-filled or really as interesting as my other chapters._ However, _the next few chapters will have you guys on the edge of your seats. I'm finally done with school until the fall, so I'm hoping to update more frequently.

Fingers crossed!

;) Enjoy!

* * *

><p>Okay.<p>

Emily was dreaming, right? There was _no way _Spencer Hastings was kissing her. Spencer was one of her best friends. Spencer was one of her _girlfriend's _best friends. Yet here they were, lips pressed against lips. Spencer tangled her fingers through Emily's dark hair and try as she might, Emily couldn't deny that Spencer's lips were smooth and soft. Spencer's lips felt odd against her own as opposed to how Hanna's felt, and Spencer tasted heavily of the whiskey she'd been drinking.

No. Just...no. This was wrong on so many levels. Emily shoved Spencer away from her with a gasp of, "Spencer, what the _hell _is wrong with you?" but Spencer only cocked her head and burst into a fit of drunken peal.

"I'm...I've been trying to figure that out since I was seven, Emily. If you find the answer, do let me know."

Emily touched her lips. Her insides felt like they were encased in acid and the air around her felt constricted. "S-Spencer, y-you...you _kissed me."_

"Yep."

"I- I.._why_ would you do that? I have a girlfriend! Hanna Marin, remember? Bubbly and blonde? Full of spunk? You have a boyfriend! Wren! We you...we cheated!"

Spencer shook her head, her dark hair falling in front of her face. Her glassed-over eyes snapped to the whiskey bottle and she tried to make a swipe for it, but Emily grabbed Spencer's wrist.

"No. It's empty, anyway."

"I didn't cheat."

Emily's brows furrowed. "What exactly do you call kissing someone else when you have a boyfriend, then?"

"I don't have a boyfriend. I, uh, we broke up."

_"What?" _Emily gasped.

"Rather, _I _broke up with _him," _Spencer clarified.

"When?" Emily was perplexed. What the heck was going on with Spencer?

"Does it matter? Last week, two days ago, I don't know. Point is, I didn't cheat. _You _did."

"I...you kissed me. I didn't kiss you."

Spencer shrugged. She started to say something else when her face suddenly turned ashen and she let out a groan. "Oh, God. My stomach. I think I'm going to -" Spencer shot to her feet and clumsily bolted for the bathroom down the hall.

Emily heard the door shut followed by the sound of Spencer vomiting a few seconds later. Yuck. Her head was spinning. Had Spencer basically confessed that she _loved_ her? She sighed and raked her fingers through her hair. This wasn't how this night was supposed to go. Spencer was supposed to help her study, not...kiss her.

Emily sighed and got up, retrieving her phone from the carpet. She immediately called Hanna back, closing her eyes and trying to get her heart rate under control.

**_'Hey, you reached Hanna. I can't answer the phone right now. I'm probably too busy using my mouth on Emily to talk, so leave a message and I'll get back to ya. Maybe.'_**

Emily cursed. Great, now Hanna wasn't answering her phone calls. And when had she changed her voicemail? Emily made a mental note to herself to talk to Hanna about changing it.

Spencer had stopped throwing up, but she hadn't emerged from the bathroom yet. Emily was torn between wanting to help her and leaving. But she couldn't just leave her alone when she was drunk, could she? What kind of friend would she be if she did that? Emily dialed another number and perched on the end of the coffee table, accidentally knocking off the bottle of whiskey. It rolled underneath the couch and Emily made no move to get it.

"H-Hello?"

"Aria, it's Emily. I need a huge favor from you."

"Sure thing. W-what's up?"

Emily pressed her lips together. Aria sounded a little funny, like she was out of breath. "..Are you with Ezra?"

"...Yes."

Emily snickered. "Sorry for interrupting, but this is important. You need to come over to Spencer's and, uh, babysit?"

"Babysit whom?"

"Spencer. She's...drunk. Really drunk and I..I can't stay here."

Aria sighed on the other end. "Why is she drunk? Why can't you stay there?"

Emily's mouth twitched. "Can you please just come over here? Please?"

There was a slight pause and Aria heard shuffling and quiet voices.

"I'll be there in ten minutes."

"Thanks."

Emily hung up with Aria and reluctantly padded over to the bathroom door. She knocked on it lightly. "Spencer?"

When Spencer didn't answer, Emily twisted the doorknob, but it was locked. "Spence?"

"G-go away," Spencer moaned.

"I...are you okay?"

"Do I sound okay? Jesus, Emily."

"..No."

"I'll...I'll be out in a minute."

Emily retreated back to the living room and spent the next ten minutes nervously flipping through Spencer's textbooks. When the doorbell chimed, Emily practically flew to the door and flung it open.

Aria slipped by Emily, her shirt slightly wrinkled. She had tussled hair and Emily could smell the strong scent of perfume on her, an obvious attempt to mask the smell of sex. Emily didn't even know Ezra and Aria had started sleeping together.

"Thanks, Ar. I know you were...busy."

"It's fine, Em. Where's Spencer?"

"Puking her guts out in the bathroom."

Emily led Aria back to the living room and gathered her things. "Just be sure not to let her sleep on her back. Give her water or coffee. Sober her up."

_"We kissed, you know.."_

Emily gazed at Aria uncertainly and fiddled with the buttons on her purse. "She kissed me," she blurted out.

"...What?"

"Spencer. She kissed me."

..."_What?"_

And then, Emily was telling Aria everything Spencer had done and said, including her confession concerning their lip-lock. Aria had flushed when it was mentioned, but just motioned for Emily to continue. The girls were so busy talking they didn't realize Spencer was standing behind them.

"I can't believe she didn't tell me any of this."

"I can't believe it's not butter."

Aria and Emily turned. Spencer was leaning on the back of the couch. Her face was extremely pale and her eyes looked red and puffy. She reeked of whiskey and vomit and the combined smells made the girls shudder.

"Spencer..."

Spencer glanced at Aria curiously while Emily prepared to leave. "Pixie!"

"I-what?"

"She thinks you're a pixie or something," Emily explained as she slipped into her shoes. She bid a quick goodbye to her friends and walked out the door. "Bye, guys. Good luck, Aria."

The fresh air felt cool and refreshing against her skin. and Emily took a few deep breaths. She tried calling Hanna again, but her girlfriend didn't answer her phone. She was probably sleeping or something. Maybe it would be best to talk to Hanna tomorrow.

"Maybe this whole thing won't seem that bad tomorrow."

Emily could only hope, but sometimes lady luck wasn't in her favor. At least things couldn't get any worse, right?

* * *

><p>So ends another chapter.<p>

In the next one, our dear Hanna gets shipped off to military school. How will she handle it? It might be a bit of a challenge, but Hanna can handle anything. :P

Don't forget to leave reviews!

Love you guys. 3


	14. Willmore

Hey guys! :D Here's another chapter. I apologize for the wait. I know you guys have been waiting for a long time. I hope you enjoy this chapter!

* * *

><p>"Wake up!"<p>

Sunlight streamed through Spencer's windows, making her squint her eyes. She groaned and pulled her blankets over her head.

"Spencer, wake the fuck up!"

_Is that Aria? _

Spencer's head pounded. Her stomach felt like she'd spent spring break in Cancun. She lifted her head up and squinted at Aria through her sleepy gaze. Aria was wearing one of her field hockey t-shirts that was way too big on her, and Spencer's skin prickled. _Oh, God. We didn't._

"W-hy are you wearing my shirt?"

"I needed pajamas."

Aria looked tired, like she hadn't slept all night. She also appeared absolutely furious and it made Spencer a little uneasy.

"What happened last night?"

"You don't remember?" Aria snorted. "_That's_ convenient."

Spencer rubbed her eyes, trying not to wince at the harshness of Aria's tone. Jesus, what had she done? "No," she grumbled. "I don't remember anything."

Aria sighed and perched on the end of Spencer's bed and her her fingers through her hair. Spencer's eyes were still bloodshot. "You may have effectively destroyed Hanna and Emily's relationship."

_"..What?"_

"Emily came over so you could help her study last night...and you were drunk. You were _really _drunk."

Spencer pressed her palms into her temples. "I gathered that much, Aria. I feel horrible. W-what did I do?"

Aria hesitated. "You kissed Emily."

"...That's not funny."

"I'm not joking." Aria pressed her lips into a thin line. "You, um, kissed her and told her that you could be more fun than Hanna. And you...you told her that we kissed."

Spencer lifted her head from her hands. "I - I..we...it wasn't even a kiss!" she squeaked. "Oh, God. I can't believe I kissed Emily. I can't -"

"I can't believe you didn't tell me that you had feelings for her!" Aria snapped, rising to he feet. Since when are you gay?"

"I-"

"I am not finished yet, Spencer!"

Spencer flinched, pulling her knees up to her chest. "Sorry," she said in a tiny voice.

"You should be! What the fuck where you thinking? Do you just have no self-control? Are you so self-absorbed that you have to have everyone? Wren, Emily, who's next, Hanna? _Me?"_

"N-no! Aria, I didn't mean to...I just...I wasn't thinking!"

"Well, isn't that a first?"

Spencer swallowed the lump in her throat. Tears burned at the corners of her eyes. "Please don't yell at me, it's not doing anything to help my head. I don't know why I did what I did, okay? I just did."

Aria scoffed but remained silent.

"Hanna's going to be so pissed," Spencer groused.

"Do you remember when the four of us went to that gay pride festival shortly after Em came out?"

"Yeah, I was picking silly string and glitter out of my hair for a week."

Aria ignored her. "Do you remember that girl who kept following us around and hitting on Emily? Her name was -"

"Violet," Spencer cut in, nose scrunching up. "She wouldn't stop flirting with Emily and she smacked her ass."

"Hanna turned around and punched her so hard she fractured her nose. Paramedics were called, we got thrown out. Party over."

Spencer smirked at the memory. "I didn't know Hanna had such a strong right hook."

Aria rolled her eyes. "The point taking a stroll down memory lane is that Hanna punched a girl she barely knew just because she smacked Emily's ass. At a gay pride festival. An outside celebration. People were running around in feather boas and others were practically getting it on inside the photo booths."

"And?"

"What do you think Hanna's going to do to someone who kissed her girlfriend? _Especially _when that person is her best friend."

Spencer's skin paled and she covered her face with her hands. "Hanna will kill me."

"Hanna's going to use your kidneys as bongo drums at military school. A is going to pay for setting Hanna up."

Spencer froze. Oh, right. She'd stabbed Hanna in the back _twice_ now. What a great friend she was. She sighed heavily and reached out a hand to tug Aria on her bed. "Aria, I have to tell you something."

Spencer's eyes were sorrowful, her expression grim. Her eyes had dark circles under them and Aria felt a twinge of guilt. "I'm sorry for being so rough on you, Spencer. You're my best friend. I was just..shocked. I was angry. M-maybe I was..."

Spencer's heart started to pound. "Maybe you were what?"

"Maybe I was...a little jealous."

"Jealous?" Spencer repeated incredulously. "Why?"

Aria hugged her knees to her chest. "Hanna loves Emily, Emily loves Hanna. _You _like _Emily. _What's wrong with me?"

Spencer gaped at Aria but her throat was dry. She couldn't get her mouth to work and only managed to stare at the tiny brunette.

Aria only continued, her voice growing smaller and smaller. "Hanna's gorgeous. Silky blonde hair and blazing blue eyes. Emily's complexion is so...beautiful and she's so headstrong, like you. All I am is just...Aria."

There was pain hidden within Aria's words and Spencer's stomach twisted.

"Y-you're not _just _Aria. You're my best friend. You're so, so beautiful. You're creative, you're loyal. Aria, you're so strong. You've kept yourself together despite all that we've been through. For someone who's only 5'2, you're the bravest person I've ever met. You have more creativity in one fingernail than Hanna, Emily and I have combined."

Aria's face brightened. "You really think so?"

"I _know_ so. And...I won't lie, I've...thought of you know, us."

"You _have?"_

Spencer nodded, lowering her gaze to study a collection of bracelets on Aria's left wrist. She opened her mouth to say something when her phone rang and she winced at the customized ringtone - Hanna.

"It's Hanna."

"Oh. You'd better answer it."

Spencer gulped and reached her phone, answering it as calmly as she could.

"Hello?"

"Spencer?" Hanna's sounded lethargic and she was sniffling. Oh, shit.

"H-hey, Hanna. I - what's wrong?"

"You need to come over. E-Emily's here. I know Aria's with you, so you need two need to get over here right now." Hanna hung up without giving Spencer a chance to speak and Spencer dropped her phone on her bed.

"Hanna wants us to come over," she said quietly. "Em is there."

Aria fiddled with a bracelet. "I guess we'd better get going. I'll have to borrow something else of yours, if that's okay."

"That's fine. I need to get out of these pajam -" Spencer's eyes widened as she realized she was indeed, wearing pajamas. "You helped me change for bed?"

Aria blushed furiously. "You were passed out, so I...I did all the work. I couldn't leave you in your clothes."

Color rose to Spencer's cheeks as she pulled back her covers and stood up. Her legs were wobbly and she nearly fell over, but Aria grabbed her around the waist.

"Oh! What did you have to tell me?"

Spencer's eyes flashed down to Aria's arms locked around her waist. She...couldn't disappoint her again. "I just wanted to thank you for everything."

Aria smiled. "What are friends for?"

"Yeah." Spencer forced a grin. Friends. Only Spencer felt more like an enemy.

* * *

><p>"It'll be okay, Hanna. You'll be all right."<p>

Emily rubbed Hanna's shoulder comfortably. She'd gone over to Hanna's first thing this morning, fully intending on telling her what had happened with Spencer, but she'd found Hanna crying on her bed. At first, she'd thought that Spencer had already told her, but Hanna was crying about military school. Turns out, _somebody _from the school had called earlier before Emily had arrived - their school was filled but they'd found a replacement school. Only Hanna would have to stay there for a month. Unfortunately, the replacement school only had monthlong programs, not weeklong.

"I'll be gone for a month!" Hanna wailed.

"Baby..."

"A month!"

Emily wrapped her arms around Hanna's waist and gently kissed the top of her head. Willmore Military Academy doesn't sound so bad. I mean you'll make friends."

"Yeah, right. A group of brainwashed clones walking around screams friends."

Emily rubbed Hanna's back and was about to say something else when Spencer and Aria waltzed into Hanna's room. At the sight of Spencer, Emily's blood turned to ice.

"What's wrong?" Aria instantly ran over and gathered Hanna into a hug. Through shaky breathes, Hanna explained what had happened. It didn't take a genius to figure out who had been behind the rearrangement.

"_Willmore?_" Aria frowned. "God, that sounds awful."

Spencer cleared her throat nervously. "Hey, why don't I go get something for us to drink? Emily, want to help?"

Emily froze. It wasn't like she could decline, how would that look? With Aria left to comfort Hanna, Emily had no choice but to follow Spencer down to the kitchen.

"Emily, I'm so sorry," Spencer blurted the second they were alone. "A-Aria told me what I did. I'm so, so sorry. I didn't mean to, honest. I would never want to take you away from Hanna."

Emily was quiet for a few seconds as she gathered cans of soda into her arms. "You kissed me," she whispered.

"I-I know. And it was wrong of me, Emily. I made a terrible mistake. I...please don't tell Hanna."

Emily looked shocked. "I have to tell her!"

"No!" Spencer cupped her hands together. "Please. Emily, she...she doesn't need to know. It'll kill her. We can't drop a bomb like this on her before she leaves for a month." Spencer didn't have the heart to tell Emily that she was the cause of that too.

Emily sighed. "Do you promise that nothing like this will ever happen again?"

"I promise!"

Emily nodded. "Then...I won't tell her."

Spencer moved to hug Emily, but changed her mind at the last minute and stepped back. "Thank you, Emily. Thank you."

"Let's just head upstairs."

When Spencer and Hanna arrived back upstairs, Hanna immediately pulled Emily into her arms and kissed her. Spencer looked away and Aria glanced at Spencer.

Hanna and Emily pulled back and Hanna settled into Emily's lap, burying her face in her chest.

"We need to spend as much time together as we can, Em."

"We will Hanna, don't worry. We will."

* * *

><p><strong><em>One week later<em>**

It'd gone by so fast. Hanna and Emily had spent the entire week together, occasionally inviting Aria and Spencer along to do whatever they were planning to do. Most of the time Spencer and Aria were busy hanging out together.

Emily and Hanna had gone to the movies and to the park. They'd gone ice skating and played mini golf. Emily had taken Hanna night swimming and they'd made out more times than Hanna could count. A few times, they came to making love, but each time Emily pulled away and said she wasn't ready. Hanna was more than happy to wait for Emily and Emily would be lying if she said part her reluctance didn't have to do with her deal with Spencer.

On their last night together, Hanna and Emily were sprawled out together on Hanna's bed. Blonde hair mixed with black, their legs entwined. Lips were pressed together, delicate and soft hands exploring each other's bodies.

Hanna raked her nails down Emily's stomach, smirking when Emily sighed and her back arched. She broke their kiss and rested her head against Emily's chest, listening to her fast heartbeat.

"I love you, Emily."

"I love you too, Hanna."

Emily gently lifted Hanna's chin up and cupped her face in her hands, kissing her passionately. "I'm going to miss you so much."

"I'll miss you too. I still can't believe my parents are actually going through with this."

"I know, babe."

Hanna sighed and untangled herself from Emily's arms. "Will you go get me a drink, please? Maybe a smoothie?"

"Sure, hon. I'll be right back."

Emily slipped out of Hanna's bed and exited her room. The second Hanna knew Emily was downstairs, she grabbed her phone and dialed Spencer's number. It rung five times before Spencer answered.

"Hey, Hanna. What's up?"

Hanna's nose wrinkled. Spencer sounded a bit out of breath. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Aria and I were just dancing."

"Ah. Well, I wanted to talk to you about something. I...need a favor."

"Sure, anything."

Hanna closed her eyes as she heard the whirl of the blender. "I didn't want to say this in front of Emily, but I need you to watch over her. You know, make sure no one messes with her. Keep people from bullying her. Em's too sweet to fight back."

Spencer was quiet for a few minutes. "She can take care of herself."

Hanna sighed. "I know, but I still want you to watch over her. You're one of my best friends. You're the next best person to keep her safe. You're such a great friend."

"I..." Spencer's voice cracked. "Okay." she whispered. "Consider it done."

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

Hanna heard footsteps on the stairs and lowered her voice. "I have to go. Thanks again, Spencer."

"Don't mention it, Hanna."

Hanna smiled. "Even though I haven't said it yet, I'll miss you and the elf."

Spencer laughed. "I'll miss you too." There was a pause and she added,"Aria said she'll miss you."

"Obviously, I'm fantastic. Anyway, I have to go."

"Text me in the morning, Han."

Hanna hung up and placed her phone down just as Emily appeared in her room, holding two glasses of a banana-orange smoothie.

"Did you miss me?" Emily sat down on Hanna's bed, passing off her drink.

"I always miss you."'

Hanna set her glass down and Emily crawled into her lap, setting her own glass down as well. She kissed Hanna feverishly, tangling her fingers in blond tresses.

Hanna leaned back against her pillows, her hands disappearing under Emily's top. As the kiss deepened, Hanna flipped them over so she could be on top and straddled Emily's waist. She licked, bit and sucked gently on her neck, loving every sound that came out of Emily's mouth.

"Hanna.."

Emily's head titled back. Her eyes were shut so she didn't know what Hanna was doing until she felt a cold, sticky substance on her pulse point, followed by Hanna's warm tongue. "_Hanna." _

Hanna slowly licked the small amount of smoothie off Emily's neck, giggling as she did so. This happened several more times, each in different place - Emily's neck, her collarbone, her shoulder, her jawline. Hanna had even placed a daring kiss to Emily's bellybutton, her tongue dancing up her girlfriend's toned stomach. Just before she could reach her breasts, Hanna pulled Emily's top back down and moved up to kiss her.

"H-holy shit, what was that?"

Hanna grinned against Emily's lips. "Well, we're not going to be able to do this for a month, so I figured I'd make the most out of tonight. Unless of course you had other ideas in mind. We could always watch a movie or -"

Emily crashed their lips together and fumbled for the lap on Hanna's desk. "No talking unless my name is falling from your lips."

"Mm, I think that's a condition I can agree to."

Willmore Military Academy was located in Beckley, West Virginia. The stone building was hidden behind a forest at the edge of town, and it stood a whopping seven-stories tall. The building's stony structure and trimmed hedges made Hanna feel like she was in a movie. The students were walking around in green uniforms - the girls wore skirts, a white shirt a blazer and a tie. The guys wore tan, khaki shorts and dark green mens's button-down shorts.

The kids wore brown loafers on their feet and Hanna thought they clashed horribly with the uniform. In fact, the whole uniform was tacky.

Hanna's suitcase glided behind her on the school's soft carpeting. The car ride had taken just over four hours and the whole time, Hanna had held Emily's hand. Aria had sat in the front seat with Ms. Marin and Spencer, Emily and Hanna were crammed together in the back.

By the time Hanna's mom had signed her in and the group was ready to leave, Hanna was in tears. Her mascara had run down her cheeks and Emily had fixed it soothingly. But all too soon, the car disappeared down the long, wide driveway and Hanna was stuck with her tour guide - a girl with very choppy, short brown hair and braces. Black-rimmed glasses made her eyes look large and fearful. Now, they were traveling down the hallway that led to the girl's dorms, but Hanna barely paid attention as what's-her-face babbled on.

"And this is your room, 715." Holly squeaked, tugging on the ends of her dark green blazer. "I, um, you'll meet your roommate soon. She's really nice. Her name is -"

"I don't give a shit what her name is."

Holly's eyes widened. "O-oh," she whispered. "Oh, no. Ah, miss that language isn't allowed. It's very foul. I...your roommate should be here in a few minutes with the Headmaster to greet you. I...just please don't use that language. It's so..mean."

Hanna's lips curled up into a smirk. "Oh, is it? Well, that's too goddamn bad." She ripped her key out of Holly's hands, shoved her out of the way and unlocked her door. "Thanks, _Holly _Berry." She slipped inside and slammed the door, locking it immediately.

Okay, so, maybe Hanna wasn't very nice. But who could blame her? She was thousands of miles away from her hometown. She was stuck in this hellhole without her friends, without her girlfriend. This was going to be torture.

Hanna stepped forward, gazing cautiously around the room. There was a bathroom that didn't have a shower in it, a few couches, a couple of desks and some dressers. The only thing that separated the two twin-sized beds was a nightstand that only had an alarm clock on it.

The bed to the left of the nightstand was completely bare but the one on the right had a thick baby blue comforter set and a dozen pillows. The walls were bare and Hanna figured the school didn't allow too much individualization. Maybe her roommate just didn't want to put anything up.

Hanna tossed her suitcase down and fell on her bed, burying her face in her hands. This room was too small. She didn't want a fucking roommate. She just wanted to be at home, with Emily, with her friends.

Tears threatened to fall and Hanna sniffed quietly. "I want to go home.."

When the door opened and shut, Hanna didn't even look up. She wasn't going to befriend her roommate. She wasn't going to make any friends here. The faster this went by, the better.

"Uh, hello," a voice said. "Aren't you going to introduce yourself?"

Hanna scowled under and her breath and finally pried her hands away from her face.

The girl before her was a little taller than herself. She was clad in the standard uniform, but her tie looked a little wrinkled. Hazel eyes peered at her from under an army-print cap and Hanna almost swallowed her teeth. The girl's hair was short and black. Not an unusual color like it usually was, but Hanna remembered the high-cheek bones, the sneaky smile, the dimples.

"...Piper?"

* * *

><p>Ooh. Hanna's roommate is Piper. You guys remember her, right?<p>

Hm. I wonder how things will go with these two. Please R&R! Oh, and I promise I'll try not to have so mant cliffhangers.


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